F1 penalty leaves Sainz "a bit down" after seeing Ferrari pace in Turkey
Carlos Sainz conceded he felt “a bit more down” carrying a grid penalty into the Turkey Formula 1 weekend after seeing Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc’s pace on Friday.
Ferrari announced ahead of the race weekend at Istanbul Park that Sainz would be starting at the back of the grid on Sunday after the team took an all-new power unit, giving him the upgraded hybrid system.
It meant Sainz focused his Friday running on race pace to prepare for Sunday's grand prix, but Leclerc surged to second place on the timesheets in FP2, finishing within two-tenths of championship leader Lewis Hamilton.
Sainz said that while he still relished the challenge of fighting through the field in Turkey, he was "a bit less" excited after seeing what Leclerc could do.
"Now I see where Charles is in the low fuel, and you see that he could be fighting for a podium, it makes me [feel] a bit of a regret [for] the fact that I'm not going to be there on Saturday to fight for it and on Sunday to fight for it, unless I do a huge comeback that is obviously quite unlikely," Sainz said.
"It just makes me feel a bit more down, just because I wish I could be up there with him fighting for higher places, looking at where the pace of the car is this weekend."
Carlos Sainz Jr., Ferrari SF21
Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
Sainz vowed to "keep the faith up" that he could "have some fun going through the field" to score points, but added he "would much rather be in the top five in quali and in the race".
The high grip levels in Turkey may play to Ferrari's advantage, allowing it to add more front-end downforce to the car that aided Leclerc's surge to second in FP2.
The Monegasque driver has scored two pole positions this season, topping qualifying in both Monaco and Azerbaijan after impressing in practice.
But Leclerc was wary of reading too much into his Friday performance in Turkey, believing the leading teams still had more pace to find.
"The feeling has been good all day, but we shouldn't get carried away because I feel like the top teams have more to show," Leclerc said.
"Also on high fuel it's been looking good. So everything looks positive for now, but again, it's only Friday.
"So for now I want to keep my head down, keep working as hard as we can to try and fine tune the car to have a perfect quali tomorrow."
Related video
Hamilton braced for "a lot of work" in Turkish GP after penalty
Pirelli fears Turkey F1 tyre choice "too aggressive"
The line Verstappen finally crossed in F1's first Jeddah race
OPINION: Max Verstappen has made the 2021 Formula 1 championship. He’s taken the fight to the all-conquering Mercedes squad and its dominant champion, produced driving displays few can match. But he’s been on a controversial course too, and finally crossed a particular line in Jeddah
Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Driver Ratings
An ill-tempered Saudi Grand Prix made Formula 1 more soap opera than sporting spectacle at times, but there were some strong performances up and down the field on the world championship's first visit to Jeddah
How the Jeddah F1 race became a one-sitting Netflix drama series
The inaugural Saudi Arabian Grand Prix was a race packed full of incident as Formula 1 2021's title contenders repeatedly clashed on track. Lewis Hamilton won out over Max Verstappen to level the scores heading into next weekend's Abu Dhabi finale, as Jeddah turned F1 into a drama series
The impressive attitude that earned Albon his second F1 chance
Dropped by Red Bull last season, Alexander Albon has fought back into a Formula 1 seat with Williams. ALEX KALINAUCKAS explains what Albon has done to earn the place soon to be vacated by the highly rated George Russell
The factors that could negate Red Bull's practice gap to Mercedes
Mercedes led the way in practice for Formula 1’s first race in Jeddah, where Red Bull was off the pace on both single-lap and long runs. But, if Max Verstappen can reverse the results on Saturday, factors familiar in motorsport’s main electric single-seater category could be decisive in another close battle with Lewis Hamilton...
Why Norris doesn’t expect Mr Nice Guy praise for much longer
Earning praise from rivals has been a welcome sign that Lando Norris is becoming established among Formula 1's elite. But the McLaren driver is confident that his team's upward curve can put him in the mix to contend for titles in the future, when he's hoping the compliments will be replaced by being deemed an equal adversary
What Ferrari still needs to improve to return to F1 title contention
After a disastrous 2020 in which it slumped to sixth in the F1 constructors' standings, Ferrari has rebounded strongly and is on course to finish third - despite regulations that forced it to carryover much of its forgettable SF1000 machine. Yet while it can be pleased with its improvement, there are still steps it must make if 2022 is to yield a return to winning ways
How F1 teams and personnel react in pressurised situations
OPINION: The pressure is firmly on Red Bull and Mercedes as Formula 1 2021 embarks on its final double-header. How the respective teams deal with that will be a crucial factor in deciding the outcome of the drivers' and constructors' championships, as Motorsport.com's technical consultant and ex-McLaren F1 engineer Tim Wright explains.