Carlos Sainz produced a ‘masterful’ piece of driving in qualifying for the Chinese Grand Prix, F1 pundit Jolyon Palmer says. Sainz starts Sunday’s race from seventh, just behind Charles Leclerc.
While Sainz may be disappointed with his final position after qualifying in the top four at the last two races, it could easily have been much worse. The 29-year-old spun out midway through Q2, damaging his car in the process.
He ran wide on the exit of the final corner, dipping a wheel in the gravel, and lost control of his car. The Ferrari slid across the circuit and hit the opposite tyre barrier.
It initially seemed as if Sainz’s qualifying session was over. But aside from losing his front wing, he had no other critical damage.
That allowed him to limp back to the pit lane, where Ferrari were able to fit a new nose. Thanks to the red flag, he then had enough time to get back out and do another lap.
Sainz made an impressively quick recovery to out-pace Leclerc in Q2, but the Monegasque edged him by the finest of margins when it mattered. The gap between the two was a mere eight-thousandths of a second.
This was the first time Leclerc had won the qualifying battle since the opening race of the season in Bahrain. They’re now locked at 2-2 in their head-to-head.
Jolyon Palmer says Carlos Sainz emulated Max Verstappen
Speaking in commentary for Channel 4, former F1 driver Jolyon Palmer waxed lyrical about Sainz’s car control just before his accident. He saw shades of three-time world champion Max Verstappen in his ability to limit the damage.
In his eyes, it would be unfair to call Sainz lucky. Instead, he made the rapid calculations necessary to keep his qualifying hopes alive.
Watching the replays, Palmer said: “The j-turn is masterful. The way that he did it.
“This is the sort of thing that Verstappen does for fun when he’s going backwards and manages to just pirouette and keep going. It’s the awareness here for Carlos. This is not an accident.”
Is Carlos Sainz joining Audi?
A more severe accident might have halted Sainz’s electric run of form, but he’s managing to impress even when he’s making mistakes. And this could be crucial as he looks to prove his worth to potential suitors for 2025.
As it stands, of course, the Spaniard is without a seat for next year because Ferrari have elected to pair Leclerc with Lewis Hamilton instead. The talk in the paddock seems to be that Sainz will drop down to Audi.
The German manufacturer is buying 100% of the Sauber team ahead of its works entry in 2026. Sainz may have to take some initial pain next year, but he’d expect Audi to flex their muscles in the long term.
Come the start of the decade, which may admittedly be towards the end of Sainz’s F1 career, they aim to be competing for titles. And Martin Brundle says they’re making an aggressive push to put the former McLaren driver at the centre of that project.
Red Bull are also interested in re-signing a driver who started his F1 career at Toro Rosso. But Helmut Marko said this week that they can’t match the offer Audi have made.
The post 'Sort of thing that Verstappen does': Jolyon Palmer raves about 'masterful' Carlos Sainz moment in China appeared first on F1 Oversteer.