Spanish driver Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) won the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix this Sunday, the third race of the season in which Ferrari achieved a double, something that has not happened since the start of the 2022 season.
Sainz took 1:20.26.843 hours to complete 58 laps, beating his Monegasque teammate Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) by 2.366 seconds and Briton Lando Norris (McLaren) by 5.904 seconds in a race that included three-time Champion Max Verstappen ( Red Bull) retired on the second lap due to a problem with the car’s right rear brake disc.
The Dutch driver made a good start and held the lead, but on the second lap he began to complain of “strange” balance problems in the single-seater race, allowing Carlos Sainz to take over.
Verstappen’s difficulties became apparent on lap four as smoke began to emerge from the rear of his single-seater. As he headed to the pits, a brake disc exploded.
It was the end of Max Verstappen’s run of nine straight wins, failing to break the sporting record of 10 that he has held since last year.
Since then, Carlos Sainz has controlled the race, no longer relinquishing control despite the physical problems he suffered due to the appendix operation he had to undergo two weeks ago.
Charles Leclerc had to stop before his teammate to change tires to protect himself from the attack of the two McLarens behind him, and the best he could achieve was second place, giving Ferrari a one-two finish , which they no longer had. from the 2022 Bahrain Grand Prix, the season opener.
Max Verstappen has not given up for two years (43 races), starting with the 2022 Australian Grand Prix.
Two Mercedes remained on the road. First Lewis Hamilton, who broke his engine on lap 17, and on the final lap a crashing George Russell crashed into the wall and forced the race to end under the virtual safety car.
It was Carlos Sainz’s third victory in Formula 1 after last year’s Singapore Grand Prix (he already won the British Grand Prix in 2022).
“It was a good race. Physically it was not easy, but I managed with my pace and the tires. This is proof that hard work pays off,” the Spaniard said at the end.
Sainz admitted that this start to the season, which saw him learn that Ferrari would not be renewing his contract at the end of the year and which saw him undergo surgery, “has been a roller coaster”. [de emoções]”But despite this, he says he is “very pleased” with the triumph. “I recommend that pilots have their appendix removed,” he joked.
Regarding the start of the race, he says he didn’t realize the cause of Verstappen’s problems, but regretted the result. “It was a shame because I think we would have had a good fight,” he stressed.
By stopping early, Charles Leclerc’s chances of winning were immediately damaged, but the truth is that the Monegasque never showed the pace to challenge his teammate.
“I should have done better. Carlos had a better weekend and deserved the victory,” admitted Leclerc at the end.
With these results, Max Verstappen maintains his championship lead with 51 points, now just four more than Charles Leclerc, who received an extra point for the fastest lap.
It was this extra point that allowed him to take second place, one point more than the Mexican Sergio Perez, who was only fifth today. Sainz is in fourth place with 40 points.
Red Bull leads the Constructors’ Championship with 97 points, four more than second-place Ferrari.
The next stage is the Japanese Grand Prix, which will take place from April 5 to 7.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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