Carlos Sainz went from a first-time Formula One champion to a non-finalist in the space of a week on Sunday after his Ferrari engine blew up just as he took second place at the Austrian Grand Prix.
Sainz said he was not satisfied with the speed of the rescue vehicles when his car caught fire in lap 58, as he had to exit the vehicle without assistance.
“It wasn’t an ideal or easy situation, because I could see in the mirror that my car was on fire,” Sainz said. “I was pressing the brakes, but as soon as I was about to get out, I didn’t want to let the car go completely free, lose control and roll backwards.
“I called the police to help me, put something in the tire to stop the car from rolling. But the whole process was a bit slow and at times too burnt so I had to keep going. And I had to jump out. outside.
“It’s definitely something that we need to look at how we can do it a little bit faster, because it’s not an easy situation.”
Sainz, who won the British Grand Prix at Silverstone last Sundaysaid the fiery defeat at the Red Bull Ring came without warning.
“There was no response from the engine that this was imminent, [it was] very sudden,” he told Sky Sports.
“I’m a bit at a loss because it’s obviously a huge loss of points and a huge result for the team. I think today’s going to be one-of-a-kind easily.”
Sainz squatted beside the track, stunned by his misfortune, after the officers stopped the wheelchair and put out the flames.
Teammate Charles Leclerc won the race over Red Bull’s championship leader Max Verstappen after a late jolt but Ferrari was quick, suffered little tire degradation, and should have been one of the two.
Sainz, fourth in the standings: “It’s harder to make that harder because we’re about to cut points with the championship leaders, both Max and Red Bull, we’re about to make a finish. huge result for the team,” said Sainz, who is fourth in the standings.
“It’s heartbreaking but we’ll need to keep pushing, turn the page and still have a long season ahead of us.”
Team boss Mattia Binotto said Ferrari’s second straight win after six consecutive defeats to Red Bull was important for morale, with Leclerc now 38 points behind Verstappen.
“Happy for the win, a little disappointed by the loss against Carlos’s [car] because today could be an even better Sunday,” he added.
