F1 News: Carlos Sainz Disappointed Over Las Vegas FP1 Incident - "Expected More From The Sport In The Situation”

Carlos Sainz was disappointed that neither the FIA nor the teams came to his rescue after he was levied a 10-place-grid penalty for no fault of his.

A disappointed Carlos Sainz revealed that he expected a lot more from the FIA, the teams, and the rules to save him from a 10-place grid drop for using a third energy store on his SF-23, as it suffered severe damage from hitting a drain cover in FP1 at speeds of over 300 kph. 

Despite no fault of his, the governing authority had to go by the rule book to punish him. In addition, none of the teams protested against the decision or, came to his rescue 'as a sport,' which caused the Ferrari driver to lose hope entirely. 

It is worth noting that as per David Croft, who reported to Sky Sports, nine teams would have voted to allow Sainz to replace the parts without a penalty, but there's one team that voted against it. 

Consequently, though he finished the qualifying round in second place behind teammate Charles Leclerc, Sainz will start from P12 due to the penalty levied upon him. The disappointed driver spoke to the media after the qualifying session in Las Vegas, explaining all aspects that added to an upsetting situation. He said:

“I think it speaks for itself, no?

“There was clearly a safety issue at the track – that safety issue destroyed my car. My mechanics have to invest five hours in putting together a completely new car and, on top of that, we get a 10-place grid penalty for something that we have nothing to do with.

“I’m just simply disappointed. At the same time, not surprised, because there have been many cases this year that I think this sport has proven that it can do things a lot better.

“I think I’m surprised that the governing body does have the power to, in cases of force majeure, let’s say, overrule a bit in this kind of situation where it’s so clear that is something that is completely out of the team’s control and completely out of the driver’s control.

“The rules, the governing body, the teams – I don’t know, I expected more from the sport in the situation.”

Rival Team Pushed For Penalty?

Sainz added he was surprised that one of the rival teams pushed for him to get a penalty, a reason that contributed to his "bad mood." Without mentioning names, he said:

“But, for some reason, there will be rival teams pushing for me to get a penalty which surprises me in a way.

“In others, I’ve been in the sport for too long to understand that it’s business.

“There’s too much money involved in the finishing position in the Constructors’ or whatever for a team not to threaten to apply for a penalty for me.

“At the same time, as I said, not surprised. I’m extremely disappointed and honestly very upset with the whole situation, with the sport. I’m very upset, is the right word, and in a bad mood because I just expected more."