Sainz – 'Incredibly difficult to overtake McLaren'

Carlos Sainz says this was not the best race for him although the team collectively achieved a very good result and due to the slow tyre change the Spaniard was stuck behind Daniel Ricciardo in McLaren which he failed to overtake despite eight laps fresher tyres.

Sainz qualified in ninth place, five places behind teammate Leclerc, but in the sprint qualifying he lost several positions due to an incident with Russell so he finished in 11th place.

But after a penalty for Russell Sainz started tenth, followed Ricciardo in McLaren whom he could not overtake despite a faster car and remained on the track eight laps longer than him. The Spaniard built enough advantage to get back ahead of the Australian, but due to a slow tyre change he came back behind him again.

Despite a faster car and eight laps fresher tyres, Sainz failed to threaten Ricciardo whose McLaren was faster in the straight sections and the Spaniard finished sixth, for the second time this season.

“Not the greatest race for me, but in general a very good result for the team and many positives to take away,” said Sainz.

“Today our car was strong, the balance was good, and our work with the set-up is paying off.”

“Two good starts put me in a position to fight with Ricciardo, but passing the McLaren on track proved to be incredibly difficult. The dirty air through the corners meant I couldn’t get close enough and we were lacking a bit on the straights.”

“Once he pitted, my pace in clean air was super strong and I managed to virtually overcut him before my stop. Unfortunately the pit stop was slow. The team has been great at pit stops all year and these things can happen. I tried my best to overtake the McLaren during the second stint but we faced the same problem and in the end we came home in P6.”

“A big congrats to Charles, who nearly managed to secure a win for the team! This race gives us a good feeling for Hungary and for the second part of the season. We keep pushing.”

Binotto happy with progress since French GP

Team boss Mattia Binotto was encouraged by the progress Ferrari has shown since the French GP when they were left without points due to major tyre degradation problems.

“This was a positive Grand Prix for us, not just because of the result, but mainly because of the progress the team has made,” said Binotto.

“After the race in France the whole group reacted well. We know we are not yet at the point to be fighting for the top places on a regular basis, as there are two cars that are faster than ours. But it’s important that we are working in the right direction.”

“Charles drove a fantastic race, following on from excellent performances on Friday and Saturday. I can understand his disappointment because it hurts to lose a win in the closing moments of a race, but he should be pleased with what he achieved over these three days.”

“Carlos drove a solid race. It was a shame that a technical problem with a wheel gun at the pit stop cost him at least one place. Now we are looking ahead to the next race in Hungary. It’s a very different type of track to this one and we will be looking to confirm the progress seen over the past few races.”