With Leclerc’s victory in Monza, Ferrari has revived its title ambitions – Why Carlos Sainz also believes the Italians could still have a chance in the world championship
Who would have thought it? Although Ferrari had quite a performance slump in the first half of the season, the Italians are just 39 points behind leaders Red Bull in the constructors’ championship and therefore still have every chance of challenging for the world title in the second half of the season
Carlos Sainz also expressed his surprise that Ferrari still has a realistic chance of winning the world title despite the difficulties the team has had to contend with since its victory in Monaco. “Yes, I’m surprised, because I don’t know how many races there were between Monaco and Monza, but it’s maybe a third of the season,” admitted the Spaniard.
“We had a strong first third, a bad second third and now we are in the last third of the season. We had a bad middle of the season, but we are still in the fight,” says Sainz, who believes the Italians will be back in contention for the world championship.
“Always getting the maximum out of it ”
The race strategy played a major role in this, with Ferrari getting the best possible result out of mediocre material. “That shows how far this team has come when it comes to performing well and scoring points, even if the car doesn’t work as well as it did at the start of the season or at Monza,” recalls Sainz.
The next Ferrari victory in Baku?
Ferrari doesn’t seem to be without a chance in Baku either. “I think this is a track where our car could work well,” hopes the 30-year-old. “We have been fast here in the past. I think Charles has taken the last four poles here.”
Similar to Singapore, where Sainz triumphed last year, the street circuit in Baku has many slow 90-degree corners. This should suit the Ferrari SF-24. “So it could be a good opportunity to win another race or finish on the podium. We will try to do that. “
Most recently, Ferrari even celebrated a victory at its home race in Italy through Charles Leclerc. “Yes, that gives us a good run, but at the same time it’s maybe a wrong run, because if you come back to Austin and the car is like it was at Zandvoort, then you’re missing something,” Sainz suspects that the current performance is not a sure-fire success.
Results are “impossible to predict ”
“I will go from race to race and see where that takes us,” says the Spaniard, who has also been victorious this year, explaining his tactics for the second half of the season. “If we’re only a tenth apart, it’s impossible to predict where we’ll be. You’re either a tenth ahead or a tenth behind.”
“It’s impossible to know,” explains Sainz, who knows that the second half of the season is unpredictable. “You have to go from race to race and try to get the best out of the tracks that perhaps suit you a little better. And then we’ll see where we are at the end of the year. “
