F1 News, Reports and Race Results

Sainz fears missing Q3 as Ferrari lacks downforce

Carlos Sainz endured a difficult opening day at Zandvoort, the Ferrari driver watching FP1 from the sidelines and then clocking in a lowly P16 in Friday's second practice.

Sainz's absence from FP1 was scheduled as Ferrari reserve Robert Shwartzman was handed a practice session as part of F1's 'young driver' rules.

The Spaniard took to the track in the afternoon with the hope of putting himself and his team in the mix, but a massive lack of downforce, while it powered the Scuderia's SF-23 like a rocket down the straight, left the car with little to no grip around the corners.

Ferrari had mounted a larger, Hungaroring-spec rear wing on its contender, but the change did not play out as expected, although Sainz was only half surprised by the team's underperformance.

"Unfortunately, we don't look very competitive yet," he told F1TV after the session. "We're going to need to find some lap time, some downforce, some balance because today was a tough day for the team.

"I think we saw something similar in Hungary where we go to higher downforce tracks, for some reason we don't pick up as much downforce maybe as the others when we go to the bigger rear wings.

"A bit of homework to do on our side [to understand] why we slide more than the others.

"If we want to be fighting for a podium [in qualifying] and on Sunday, it needs a very big jump in performance."

©Ferrari

Sainz feared that if this weekend's performance is anything like Hungary, then he might be hard-pressed once again to make Saturday's top-ten shootout in qualifying.

"There's a margin for improvement but when you look back at Hungary, we were fighting to get into Q3," he recalled. "It could be something similar this weekend, especially with how tight the field is."

Charles Leclerc clocked in P16 in FP1 and improved to P11 later in the afternoon. But the Monegasque echoed his teammate's sentiment and called on his team to make overnight gains.

"We've had quite a few difficulties," he said. "FP2 went in the right direction but we still need to do a step forward for tomorrow.

"The feeling wasn't great, there's a big margin to improve but now we need to do the step forward and find what was wrong for tomorrow."

©Ferrari

Leclerc suggested that tomorrow's work in FP3 will focus on small changes and putting Ferrari's car "in the right window".

"I think it's fine-tuning because already from FP1 to FP2, we did some small changes and it went in the right direction," he said.

"So, we need to do the same for tomorrow. Now it's all about trying to put the car in the right window, which we don't have yet.

"But I have a very clear idea of what I want from the car. Then we need to find the right set-ups to go around our issues. I'm confident. Normally we are quite good at that.

"We just need to do a step forward… We are not maximising our package at the moment."

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.

Recent Posts

Williams' headaches persist into Vegas practice

Williams is continuing to fight uphill battles this weekend in Las Vegas as a knock-on…

57 mins ago

Ferrari's Sainz 'not satisfied with where we are' in Vegas

It was a solid start to the Las Vegas weekend for Ferrari with Carlos Sainz…

2 hours ago

Norris labels McLaren long-run pace ‘shocking’ in chilly Vegas

Lando Norris didn’t hold back in his assessment of McLaren’s performance on the opening day…

3 hours ago

Hamilton delighted with ‘consistently strong day’ in Vegas

Lewis Hamilton was particularly happy with his opening day of running at the Las Vegas…

5 hours ago

Verstappen stuck with 'draggy' rear wing for Vegas

Red Bull fears that its prospects for this weekend's Las Vegas Grand Prix - which…

5 hours ago

Ferrari and Mercedes admit to plank changes based on FIA’s TD

Ferrari and Mercedes have both modified their car’s floor element in Las Vegas to comply…

6 hours ago