Carlos Sainz was on the verge of ignoring a call from Williams for an early pit stop at Imola. The Spanish driver was taken aback by the ‘order’, and believes that it ultimately prevented him from finishing higher than eighth. Sainz is particularly frustrated by the miscommunication surrounding the incident, as it marks the second race in a row where the driver and the team have not been on the same page.
While teammate Alexander Albon was battling with Charles Leclerc at the front of the field, the race in Imola was less successful for Carlos Sainz. The Spaniard could not climb higher than eighth place, despite starting the Grand Prix in sixth. Sainz qualified higher than both Ferrari drivers, the team from which the Madrid-born driver was replaced by Lewis Hamilton at the end of last year, but had to watch as that same Hamilton managed to climb to fourth place. This was despite the fact that the Williams car was faster than both Scuderia and Mercedes on the Italian circuit.
Sainz Surprised
Williams decided to set their two drivers on different strategies in Italy. During the race itself, Sainz stated that the strategy for Albon was the correct one, and he questioned the decision to have him make a pit stop as early as lap 11. “To be completely honest, it was never the intention to pit so early,” Sainz explains afterwards. “There was no warning from anyone saying that we were going to do this. So when the call came, I was almost inclined not to go in and thus not to obey.”
Ultimately, the Williams driver decided to comply and entered the pit lane. “At the same time, I’m a team player and it’s clear that the team has more information than I do, so I followed the order in case something happened that I couldn’t see,” Carlos Sainz Jr continues. However, this turned out not to be the case. “It’s true that everyone’s tires were degrading at that moment, but they usually go through a phase where they feel very bad and then they recover. So it definitely came as a surprise.”
Second Miscommunication in a Row
Sainz fell back to fifteenth place after the pit stop. Although the Spaniard was able to make a good comeback, he is frustrated that this is the second miscommunication in a row with his new employer. In Miami, Williams told that teammate Alexander Albon would not overtake Sainz, while the British Thai eventually did. “It’s clear that we need to improve the way we communicate, the way we understand each other on Sundays, because that has always been a strong point of mine that I need to build with the team.”
