Sainz happy with 'most enjoyable lap in qualifying of the whole season'

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Toro Rosso's Carlos Sainz continued his productive run in Monaco  in the afternoon's qualifying session, clocking in with a time which puts him P6 on tomorrow's grid.

The Spanish driver hasn't put a foot wrong since Thursday, consistently delivering a good performance in every session, and qualifying was no exception.

"We've been looking strong all weekend but suddenly in qualifying everything was as tight as in the previous races," explained Sainz.

"But we built it up, probably a bit too quick for my liking. We were doing really fast laps from Q1 onwards, and then in Q3 we just threw everything out there.

"This is definitely the most enjoyable lap in qualifying of the whole season – the one where you’re on the limit the most, the one that gives you the biggest adrenaline rush, the highest heart beat…"

"I'm extremely happy."

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Sainz doesn't have any complaints about the overall balance of Toro Rosso's STR12 but does feel it still lacks speed, which  has led to some inconsistent performances.

"I think both the team and myself expected a bit more in terms of speed the Toro Rosso because we've been doing a very good chassis.

"So the balance is always there, it's just that sometimes you put in some good laps with the balance okay and suddenly you're P12, and it's a bit of a down for the team.

"This weekend everything has worked perfectly, the balance was as good as in all the other five races but the lap times are suddenly there."

Looking ahead, Sainz is looking to sustain his momentum after hopefully staying out of harm's way at the start.

"I’m confident we can have a good race – we are fast in both long and short runs so we just need to make sure we get everything right at the start, lead the midfield and try and attack when possible!

"I will enjoy a good dinner tonight!"

 

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