Carlos Sainz And Sergio Perez Reveal 'Awkward' Medical Center Conversation After Baku Crash

Saajan Jogia | Sep 20, 2024

May 6, 2023; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso (14) of Spain , Red Bull driver Sergio Perez (11) of Mexico , Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz (55) of Spain pose after qualifying for the Miami Grand Prix at Miami International Autodrome. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-Imagn Images / John David Mercer-Imagn Images

Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz shared a humorous and "awkward" moment with Sergio Perez during their visit to the medical center after a terrifying crash at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku. Despite the severity of the incident, which initially hinted at tension between the two, Sainz confirmed that there were "no hard feelings" between them.

On the penultimate lap of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Perez's RB20 and Sainz's Ferrari SF-24 made contact, sending both cars into the barriers, forcing them to retire from the race and eliminating their chances of a podium finish. Following a detailed investigation, the F1 stewards determined that no penalties would be issued, classifying the crash as a racing incident with no driver at fault.

The stewards' investigation revealed that both drivers maintained steady steering without any sudden movements. While Sainz’s minor shift toward Perez and Perez’s positioning played a role in the collision, neither was deemed primarily at fault.

The ruling cost both drivers valuable points in the championship, with Perez’s strongest performance of the season being cut short. Meanwhile, George Russell seized the opportunity, securing a P3 finish as the chaos unfolded ahead of him.

The two drivers appeared tense as they were escorted to the medical center, but Sainz later shared details of their conversation, where they humorously tried to make sense of the crash and piece together what had gone wrong. He told the media:

“We were awkwardly sat next to each other for 20 minutes in the medical centre, both with a heart rate monitor and controlling our vitals.

“We were looking at each other and saying: ‘Mate, what the f*** happened there?’ And we were like: ‘I don’t know. But I promise I didn’t do anything bad to you, Checo. I didn’t close you off. I didn’t do anything’.

“We were having this dialogue and trying to analyse what happened. And suddenly, after these 20 minutes, we were like: ‘This sport is so s**t sometimes. How can we be here and missing out on the podium? We had the podium’.

“Charles was dying on his hard tires out there. We were probably both going to have a go at him. And we were both sitting there like: ‘How on earth did we manage to not finish in the podium?’”

Sainz concluded: “It was a podium coming – and in the end we kind of joked about it, so no hard feelings with each other.”

The Mexican driver's verdict of the incident was “just wrong moves at the wrong time.” Perez added:

“Once we took our helmets off, we realised that we both screwed it up.

“That finishing a race like that was really disappointing.”