Carlos Sainz Reveals There Is No Guarantee Ferrari Would Challenge Red Bull Everywhere Despite the New Upgrades

Nischay Rathore | 16/05/2024
Carlos Sainz Reveals There Is No Guarantee Ferrari Would Challenge Red Bull Everywhere Despite the New Upgrades

The race in Imola marks the first round of major upgrades for Ferrari. Last time around, McLaren proved an effective package can prove to be enough to beat Red Bull. However, Carlos Sainz is not as optimistic and believes the team would need a bit more than just upgrades to challenge the reigning champions. Speaking during the drivers’ press conference ahead of the Emilia Romagna GP, the Spaniard said,

“I still think it’s going to be track-dependent. I think in Miami, it was a better-suited track for our car. We had really good pace, even though McLaren and Red Bull were half a step in front. Our car felt back to normal, while in China particularly felt really not good. So, I think we are going to be very much track-dependent. Hopefully, Imola is one of those good tracks for us and we can put on a good show in front of the crowd.”

Sainz then further stressed on the struggles Ferrari faced at the Chinese GP. He highlighted how a certain type of corners do not suit their car. In order to avoid a repeat of the tough weekend in Shanghai, he urged the engineers to focus on eliminating the weakness they face in such corners.

The team could well be on the track to solving the issue. Ferrari recently conducted some extensive on-track tests. The test was shrouded in mystery as the only visuals that came out were those of the spray guards they featured on the car. That was a part of the test for the FIA who are contemplating the introduction of the guards for rain-affected races.

However, other tests were performed discreetly, and they most likely pertain to the upgrades Ferrari has brought to Imola. But does the package tackle the issues Carlos Sainz raised?

What suits Ferrari at Imola and what doesn’t?

The track in Shanghai features some long corners that did not suit the SF-24. While Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc finished P5 and P4 respectively, it was the first and the only race so far in the season the Maranello side failed to get on the podium.

The Imola track, fortunately, is vastly different from the Shanghai circuit. With the introduction of a couple of chicanes, the high-speed long corners no longer feature on the track. That should favor Ferrari.

However, there is one big roadblock that stands between them and the top step of the podium. That is Red Bull, who are introducing an extensive upgrade package themselves. Hence, it would be interesting to see who trumps the other in this development battle.

Post Edited By: Vidit Dhawan
carlos sainz ferrari Red Bull

About the author

Avatar photo

Nischay Rathore

Nischay Rathore is an F1 journalist at The SportsRush with over a thousand articles under his belt. An avid Ayrton Senna admirer, Nischay embarked on his sports journalism journey despite completing graduation in Law. When not covering the high-speed thrills of the pinnacle of motorsport, he can be seen enjoying crime thrillers and 90s gangster movies with a hearty bowl of buttery popcorn.

Don’t miss these