Carlos Sainz has been sidelined for the 2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix this weekend! The Spaniard has been diagnosed with appendicitis, as per the latest update by Scuderia Ferrari via X (formerly Twitter). Formula 1 has also confirmed that the 29-year-old won’t participate for the rest of the race weekend in Jeddah. Ferrari have announced that reserve driver Oliver Bearman will replace him.
Previously, Alex Albon too has been the victim of appendicitis. This is a serious condition where the appendix gets clogged, infected, or inflamed. Sainz will have to undergo surgery for the removal of his appendix.
Sainz was already feeling ill as he came to Jeddah and missed media day duties on Wednesday. After resting for the day in his hotel room, the #55 driver came to attend Thursday practice and drove in both FP1 and FP2. His performance was not quite up to the mark like Bahrain.
Albon too suffered from appendicitis back in 2022 during the Italian GP. The Thai driver also withdrew from the weekend midway before FP3 on Saturday. Mercedes reserve Nyck de Vries replaced Albon back then and performed wonderfully for Williams in his stand-in appearance at Monza.
Can Carlos Sainz recover in time for the Australian GP?
Alex Albon returned to drive at the very next race weekend in Singapore which happened three weeks later. So, one can expect Carlos Sainz to also take at least a couple of weeks before recovering completely from his surgery.
Given the next race weekend is two weeks later in Australia from March 22 to 24, it seems a tight deadline for the Spaniard to make a comeback. Still, Ferrari fans would hope that the 29-year-old recovers quickly after a stellar start in Bahrain.
For now, Oliver Bearman would relish the opportunity, even if it is sudden and on short notice. The British driver won’t be participating during the rest of his Formula 2 weekend. His team, Prema Racing, has confirmed via X that they will have to withdraw his #3 car from both the sprint and feature races, with his F1 duties impending.
Just in case, Sainz doesn’t recover in time for the Australian GP, Bearman may continue to drive in his place at the next race weekend too. The Saudi Arabian GP will provide Bearman with an opportunity of a lifetime as he is all set to make his F1 debut.
