Lewis Hamilton and Carlos Sainz: two totally different tales
Some of the mentioned matters forward of the upcoming Canadian Grand Prix revolves across the difficulties Lewis Hamilton is experiencing throughout his debut season with Ferrari, the identical workforce the place Carlos Sainz accomplished his remaining marketing campaign in pink final 12 months earlier than shifting to Williams. Opposite to expectations, the Spaniard is now attaining noteworthy outcomes with the Grove-based workforce, which struggled to attain factors only a season in the past.
Adjusting to a brand new workforce
Carlos Sainz, who vacated his Ferrari seat for Lewis Hamilton, highlighted in an interview with Mundo Deportivo the true challenges even a seven-time world champion like Lewis Hamilton can face when adapting to a brand new automobile. He pressured that such difficulties ought to by no means be dismissed as mere excuses. He identified that he personally understood how advanced the method could possibly be, having switched groups 5 occasions himself, typically with little time allowed for adjustment. Carlos Sainz recalled that public expectations had been excessive—individuals assumed he can be totally tailored by the third race. He additionally referenced Daniel Ricciardo’s transitions to Renault and McLaren, noting that each concerned intervals of adaptation. He mentioned he had skilled the identical sample at each workforce he had joined, and on the time many individuals didn’t consider it or noticed it as an excuse. Nonetheless, he believes Hamilton’s present struggles now affirm what he had been saying 5 or ten years in the past—maybe it wasn’t credible then, however now it’s.
Sainz’s driving type
Reflecting on his time at Ferrari, Carlos Sainz returned to the 2022 season, when he needed to adapt after a troublesome begin brought on by the brand new technical rules, which clashed together with his pure driving type. He emphasised that an important factor is in the end discovering that adaptation. A driver could undergo 5 – 6 powerful months with a workforce, however what issues is reaching the suitable degree. He felt that with sufficient expertise and energy, a driver would finally show their price. By mid-2022, Carlos Sainz had achieved pole positions at Silverstone, Austin, and Spa, and he went on to win races in 2023, reaching the extent he had aimed for. He believes the hot button is to get there—as a result of the true threat is rarely totally adapting to a workforce or a automobile. To date, he considers himself fortunate to have managed to adapt to each workforce he’s joined.
Lastly, Carlos Sainz additionally revealed which kind of automobile most accurately fits his driving type, naming those that felt most pure to him through the years. He defined {that a} little bit of luck is required when altering groups as a result of sure driving types match sure vehicles higher than others. For him, a secure automobile works finest as a result of his pure type entails rotating the automobile extra in corners, producing quite a lot of oversteer with braking and steering. If given a secure or overly secure automobile, he mentioned he may nonetheless handle it; if given a automobile with a really aggressive entrance finish, he may oversteer it an excessive amount of. Ideally, he prefers stability, however even when confronted with the aggressive entrance finish of the 2022 Ferrari—a automobile he had by no means skilled earlier than—he managed to deal with it, scoring pole positions and ending the 12 months strongly. That gave him pleasure and satisfaction, understanding that he may deal with any automobile he was given. If he receives a automobile that fits him, he’s instantly quick. If he will get the other, he can nonetheless adapt, and whereas it will not be his finest model, he believes it’s nonetheless a robust one. For instance, he recalled driving the McLaren and saying after the primary race, “I really like this automobile.” That, he believes, was his finest model in Components 1. He additionally had fond reminiscences of the 2021 Ferrari, which he enormously loved driving.