Carlos Sainz clinched his third podium finish in as many races this season, maintaining his impressive performance at the Japanese Grand Prix.
Sainz confessed to harboring doubts about his chances of securing a podium finish at the Japanese Grand Prix. Nevertheless, the Spanish driver crossed the finish line in third position, further solidifying his stellar start to the year. This achievement adds to his third-place finish in Bahrain and his victory in Australia.
Demonstrating a swift pace during the final stretch of the race, Sainz executed a clever strategy by delaying his pit stop compared to his competitors. This tactic enabled him to narrow the gap between himself, Lando Norris, and his teammate Charles Leclerc.
Sainz disclosed that he initially had reservations about the effectiveness of his chosen strategy. However, these concerns dissipated as the race progressed and it became apparent that the degradation of his tires was not as severe as anticipated.
Reflecting on his performance, Sainz expressed satisfaction with his race, particularly as the degradation lessened with the arrival of clouds.
He remarked, “I had a good race, to be honest, very happy. It was quite tough out there with the degradation but then suddenly the clouds came, the degradation went a lot lower.
“Suddenly I thought that maybe one stop was quicker and we were on the two. I had to overtake a lot of cars out there today. Overtaking was tricky, like always at Suzuka. You really need to nail the last chicane to get a good run into Turn 1. I could finish my moves, but it was tough out there.”
Sainz expressed satisfaction with the performance of the Hard compound tire, acknowledging its contribution to his quest for third place.
“I thought it was on, but I thought it was going to be very difficult to get back into fourth or P3,” he remarked.
“[With] how tricky it was to overtake the Mercedes on the second stint and how difficult it was to follow, I knew I needed a very big delta to approach Lando and Charles, and in the end, we managed.
“I was quick on that Hard tire. I really liked how the Hard gave me a good feeling to push and I could get the moves down and get that podium.”
