Carlos Sainz intervenes in the act of Estrella Galicia 0,0. /
The man from Madrid gave his first statements after the change of boss at the Scuderia during a promotional event in Galicia accompanied by Marc Márquez
There is no Christmas without the now traditional meeting of Carlos Sainz with the sports press, both the one that travels to the circuits and the one that does not, sponsored by Estrella Galicia 0,0, one of its oldest sponsors. But this time he traveled to the heart of the Coruña company and with a luxury companion: Marc Márquez. Although both the Formula 1 and MotoGP pilot live in Madrid, it was decided to travel to the brewery’s headquarters to toast a year in which many emotions have been experienced on both sides.
Sainz was the great protagonist of the questions from the press who, after the visit to the museum and beverage factory, had a moment to chat with him. It was an appearance with statements but without questions from the press, although the topic of the moment and for which Sainz was in the news also came up: the change of team leader. The act had been scheduled for months, so fortune wanted the calendar to fit perfectly.
The Madrid driver came out of the fears that have arisen in the sector of Spanish fans due to the arrival of Fréderic Vasseur in place of Mattia Binotto. There were reasons for it. The former Sauber team leader was one of those responsible for bringing Charles Leclerc to Formula 1, he led him in the team that will become Audi and now he arrives at Ferrari after a 2022 in which he had his ups and downs with Binotto. The possible favoritism of the French towards the Monegasque has caused doubts about the future of Sainz.
The Spanish pilot knew that, either in the appearance, or ‘off the record’, he was going to have to respond in this regard. Far from covering up or releasing the usual topics, he confessed something that was not known until now: Vasseur, when he was in charge of Renault, called to inquire about him.
“It is a change that we hope will be for the better. When a new person arrives there is an extra motivation for him. Fred must be given time to let him work, there are more than 1,000 people and he needs his time. I trust him a lot and I know him because in his time at Renault he already wanted to sign me. Yesterday I called him and I had my first contact with him and I hope it goes well, “he analyzed in this regard. It is clear that he had learned his lesson well and, although it is not really known if the status of the team will change, he prefers to wait to see Vasseur in person at the beginning of 2023 to draw up the new roadmap.
Balance
Regarding the season that has ended, Sainz admits that it has not been the best of his years. He has lacked that consistency that he has had in his previous years, especially in 2021 when he managed points in every race.
«There are many good things about this season. Like the first victory and the first pole position or the nine podiums, but I also had hard moments like at the beginning when I had a bad start and problems when I was better. The goal for 2023 is for there to be more high peaks than low ones, to return to being regular. You have to be regular to be a champion, as well as win races. Up ahead, the worst result was a 5 or 6, but with the number of dropouts I fell a lot. Apart from the fact that Verstappen has been very strong, Carlos has to return consistent like the one in 2021 who finished in all the races in the points, “he insisted.
It will be a year to show that it is there. The Italian press, very harsh with a Sainz who they demand to be the number 2 of Ferrari. The Ferrari environment, always uncomfortable for those who do not get into it, is not playing in favor of the Spanish. Therefore, when asked if he sees himself closer or further from being world champion, taking advantage of the fact that he was in La Coruña, he threw a very orderly gallegada: «I see him near and far. Close because I am in one of the best teams, the most successful in history, but we are at a time when there are very strong teams and drivers like Red Bull and Ferrari. We have to take advantage of the circumstances. This year I have had a car to fight for the first time and I have learned a lot to compete there, fighting for victories and pole positions.
That is the objective that has been set for 2023: to grow and grow as a pilot. From fighting for victories and pole positions casually to doing it constantly. And so you can toast, with beer or whatever.
