Carlos Sainz took stock of the season in his traditional Christmas karting, organized by his sponsor Estrella Galicia 0,0. The Ferrari driver commented that the year had left a bittersweet taste (he has only won one Grand Prix, Singapore) and that the goal for next season was to win at least two races. Regarding Madrid’s attempt to host a Formula 1 Grand Prix starting in 2026, he said: “As a Spaniard, I have no preference whether it is in Madrid or Barcelona; what I want is for the Grand Prix to be an example to follow, that be iconic and make a difference,” he said.
The driver, the only one capable of beating the Red Bulls this year, commented that in these three months before starting the 2024 season I would like to know where I am going to race in 2025 (the contract ends in 2024) and my priority is Ferrari and a contract more than two years. We have time to talk about it. “I am delighted at Ferrari and I feel valued and loved by them.”
Sainz is happy with the work done: “I think that, in general terms, it has been a season with very good moments. It has been a year that obviously has the Singapore moment and the Monza moment that I will never forget, very beautiful moments in my racing career. But it is also true that the beginning and the end we would have liked it to have gone a little better. We all expected a little more from the car and to be able to fight for more things. But I am also proud of the progress that the team has made after a difficult start”.
And he elaborated further: “We qualified with options for a podium or victory and then the race put us in our place. That made you go home a little frustrated. On Mondays there was always the mentality of continuing to work, of trying to find something, of looking for something. in the set up, in the simulator with the engineers to see why we were missing that little step in the race. At the end of the season little by little that approach has been working, but of course last June we didn’t think we were that far away.”
For Carlos Sainz, “the great advantage of Red Bull is that it has a very versatile car, capable of competing on any circuit. Our weak point has not been the strategy, but the wear of the tires, which can be due to many circumstances, and the race pace. The truth is that outside of the Red Bulls we are facing the most even F1 in history.”
And he was very sincere about the superiority of the Red Bulls: “What scares me the most is that Red Bull did not need to give 100% in some races. I think that with the advantage they had they have saved themselves a little.”
Regarding the 2024 calendar, which will have 24 races, Sainz said: “I don’t know if F1 will die of success, but with 24 races it will have to adapt to find ways to make weekends and lighter trips. I am the first delighted to run the 24 races, but with a calendar and schedules that make sense to endure in a healthy and energetic way.
For the Madrid driver, “you can’t do 24 Grand Prix as if they were Las Vegas. You have to find a balance between spectacle and sport.”
