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Just like the cars, fates only turn fast in this brutally unforgiving world of Formula 1. Carlos Sainz can attest to that with his continuing downward spiral. Restarting the season on a strong foot after the F1 summer break, Sainz was flying high and even secured a race win after two back-to-back pole positions. However, since his race win, the Ferrari man has completely lost the plot and the Qatar GP qualifying session was proof of that. Sainz was knocked out in Q2 and will start the race from P12 in the race. This is exactly why, building on his previous statements, Sainz vented out his frustration with the SF-23 as his teammate Charles Leclerc surprisingly gets by in the same machinery.

Sainz has been complaining about the state of the SF-23 even though he squeezed out a race win in Singapore. However, these complaints can be justified by his qualifying performance during the qualifying session in Losail. The Spaniard communicated his frustration about the state of the car once again to the media, as seen on Twitter (now X).

via Reuters

” Yes, it has been a complicated qualifying from the beginning. I have lacked rhythm, I have had a lot of problems with overheating the tires while in FP1 we managed to make the tire work in the optimal operative range,” says Sainz to DAZN Spain.

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“In qualifying, this was practically impossible, the car was nervous and had no grip. We have to try to find out what we can do for Saturday and then see how we can come back in the race. It is a track where it is hard to overtake, but I will try to do my best,” adds the Ferrari driver.

However, the question still remains how did Leclerc do so much better in the same piece of machinery? This difference of opinion was highlighted in the past as well between the two Ferrari men.

Charles Leclerc contradicts Carlos Sainz with a nagging problem with F1 cars

Every driver likes their car a certain way and feels a certain way. However, this becomes a problem for teams when both their drivers have completely opposite preferences. Speaking about the nagging proposing issue, both Sainz and Leclerc had completely contradictory opinions stemming from the same car.

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via Imago

For Sainz the bouncing is a problem as he complained, “These cars are very hard for the driver. Their high stiffness is not ideal for our backs and shoulders… In recent years, many have begun to have back problems.”

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However, Leclerc is unbothered by the porpoising. He said, “I have never been sensitive to this aspect. Porpoising didn’t bother me either.”

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WATCH THIS STORY | What has become an Incessant Problem for Charles Leclerc & Carlos Sainz in Ferrari’s F1 Challenger?

Could this be down to their individual setups or their preferences? Whatever the difference is, Sainz needs to find the key he did in Singapore and Monza to put a stop to this downward spiral.

Written by

Mahim Suhalka

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One take at a time

Mahim Suhalka is a senior F1 Author at EssentiallySports. Having written over 1500 articles, Mahim specializes in core sports coverage. Having followed the sport for a long time, his articles contain excellent analysis of the sport and he dives deeper into the technicalities of this complex sport.
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Edited by

Aishwary Gaonkar