Ahead of the 2023 Dutch Grand Prix, Charles Leclerc and Ferrari had spoken to the media about upcoming upgrades following a season break, with their eyes set on fighting for P2 in the constructors’ championship.
However, disaster struck the team’s hopes at the Dutch Grand Prix that took place this Sunday. After an early collision, damage to Leclerc’s car meant Ferrari were down to one driver in the points. Despite his 5th place finish, however, Carlos Sainz claims that Ferrari still only have the 6th fastest car!
Sainz admits to being outpaced at Dutch GP
At the Dutch Grand Prix, both Leclerc and Sainz were struggling with the car’s handling. Leclerc’s situation was worse due to the damage to his challenger. Surprisingly, however, even Sainz seemed to be outpaced, getting overtaken by both Alonso and even Pierre Gasly.
Speaking on the car’s performance, “I would say after looking at the Alpine more the sixth fastest car this weekend,” Sainz said.
“I know at some point it looked that we even could fight for a podium but the reality is that when the race was settled when you look at our pace we were just nowhere.”
He continued, “But yeah, when you’re going into a race and going into yesterday’s quali that we were just lacking this weekend, and we had to focus in maximizing a good result or a decent result and we did that today.
From this, it seems clear Ferrari have a lot of work on their hands to prepare for their upcoming home race at Monza.
Ferrari ends up with fifth-place finish
Even though as per Sainz the Ferrari challenger was due to be outpaced by most of the grid, he was able to bag an impressive P5 finish in the race.
Elaborating on his performance, he said, “Even in the last stint when I knew I had one set of inters left to put on for the last seven laps and the tyres were destroyed from yesterday’s quali, I still managed to keep Hamilton behind and bring home a P5 that was honestly not on the cards, I think.”
He continues, “So, we have to be happy and proud of well-executed P5. Obviously not happy with the feeling of the car and how much I struggled out there today.”
“It has to be one of my best drives of the season, for sure.”
Do you think Ferrari can fight for podiums or even wins soon? Comment what you think down below!
