Feelings in the home are mixed Ferrari after Turkish Grand Prix on the circuit of Istanbul, in which Charles Leclerc he finished fourth and Carlos Sainz eighth and which was won by the Finn from Mercedes Valtteri Bottas.
These are the words to the microphones of Sky Sport by Leclerc, who finished at the foot of the podium but for a few laps he even has lulled the dream of winning the race until he had to stop and change tires, always mounting a set of wet intermediates, just over ten laps to go: “We tried until the end. This intermediate was very strange: when the others mounted the new ones we went faster, but then after six or seven laps it was changed everything. We stopped because we were losing too much but now it was too late and in the end I struggled because I was in the area where there was a lot of graining. When I went out I felt that the rear grip was not very good, then when I had graining also in front of the car it was balanced, but I was already five seconds behind Perez. It certainly was a nice Ferrari, especially on the first stint, while the second is still difficult to assess. Positive weekend in general, of course I am a bit’ disappointed by the ending “.
Sainz, on the other hand, despite a problem at the pit stop, made a comeback twelve positions from the bottom of the grid, from which he had started for having changed the fourth power-unit season of his Red: “It was a complicated race in which at the beginning I had so much fun because in the wet I was fast and every lap I overtook a rider. When the track dried up a bit, the line was obligatory and therefore it was harder. I could have finished ahead of Norris, but it’s not a day to complain about. New engine? We are working and our goal is continue on this path to win”.
Mattia Binotto, the team principal from Maranello, he is half satisfied: “We certainly believed and tried today. Our current sentiment is of bitterness but, as mentioned, we tried the gamble. A courageous gesture in that moment. We were sure of the podium, we could risk going down to fourth place, but the opportunity was there too greedy. Right, however, then it went as it went. All in all we got closer to the best, but they still remain unassailable in front of them. With the innovations in terms of engine we have moved ahead of the rest of the group and, from now on, we will be able aim for the podium continuously. We leave Istanbul recovering 10 points at the McLaren and, in the next races, we will try to consolidate this trend. We are working one step at a time towards the future, in every area and detail. In Formula 1 there is no magic wand, so it takes time. We are satisfied but we are not satisfied. Too bad for Charles who suffered from graining on the rear after the tire change. The track slightly drier it didn’t help with the new intermediates, but it all depended on how hard you pushed right out of the pits. Charles had to force immediately, as he was under threat from Perez, and it took time to clear the tires from graining, as happened to Hamilton. Carlos, on the other hand, made one splendid comeback with overtaking in series. The new power-unit, as seen, gives us a small advantage. Too bad in his case for the time lost in the pit stop ”.
OMNISPORT | 10-10-2021 18:00
– .
