After suffering a comprehensive defeat at the Australian GP, Red Bull has pulled one back on Ferrari in Japan. As Max Verstappen suffered his first DNF in two years in Melbourne, Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc registered a 1-2 finish. The Dutchman, in partnership with Sergio Perez, has done the same on the Suzuka track this time around. However, Sainz has warned his rivals not to rest too easy after their recent triumph.
Formu1a.uno quoted him as saying, “We must not forget that here Red Bull has brought an important update and we have not. In terms of race pace, we aren’t that far off. We were 1-2 tenths higher on the safe lap, but it’s true that there will be circuits where we can compete. Suzuka definitely not, but on others definitely yes.”
There is a reason behind Sainz’s confidence in bouncing back. After narrowly missing out on the runner-up spot last year, the Maranello outfit has come back stronger in 2024.
While the problem of porpoising persists, the SF24 has found the right balance. Correcting the past year’s mistakes, Ferrari has managed to make the front end more responsive. All this while, the rear end has also improved significantly over last year’s SF23.
While Ferrari still needs to work on the rear suspension and managing setups, they are confidently stationed as the second-fastest team at the moment. The recently concluded Japanese GP is the perfect testament to their progress. Despite the circuit not being to the best of their liking, Ferrari managed a 3-4 finish after a disappointing qualifying.
This goes on to prove that Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc can manage to put Red Bull under pressure. If not on every circuit, then certainly on those where either the RB20 will struggle or the SF24 will excel.
The circuits where Carlos Sainz can catch Red Bull napping
Red Bull has proven to be excellent on tracks that give them ample opportunities to flex their straight-line speeds. Then, why did they struggle in Albert Park where there are four straights with as many DRS zones?
That is because none of those straights were long enough for the RB20 to reach its full potential. Ferrari will bank on more such circuits to finish ahead of the reigning champions.
Imola is another track where Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc will hope to get the better of Red Bull. The Maranello outfit is pending a big upgrade for the Italian circuit and will hope to win in front of their home crowd.
Fans will surely love to see some level of competition against Red Bull. They are due to witness some thrilling action at the very front end of the grid after witnessing two campaigns in which Red Bull dominated.
