Sainz Jr shines at the best time

Carlos Sainz Jr had a superb race at the Singapore GP, finishing in fourth place ahead of Sergio Pérez (Force India), thus signing his best result in F1. The pilot Toro Rosso who started from tenth position got off to a bad start, but the Spaniard was able to make the difference on the track.

“I was warned that I was ninth despite my lost places at the start, explains Carlos Sainz Jr. I stayed on the attack, overtaking several cars with my intermediate tires. Once I realized that Lewis (Hamilton) was on the same strategy as me, I told myself that we had our chances by only making one save. The last stint was difficult with the super soft tires. I had a lot of trouble finding grip. »

His good performance could not have come at a better time since Carlos Sainz Jr confirmed at Renault Sport F1 Team next year. The Spaniard's name continues to be mentioned to replace Jolyon Palmer at the following round at Sepang in Malaysia (October 1).

“I still don't think it will be my last race (with Toro Rosso), insists Carlos Sainz Jr. I told my team that I wanted to have a perfect weekend, without worrying about what happened next. They really supported me by congratulating me on my future. We were really motivated. I am proud of them and I owe them a lot. »

Carlos Sainz Jr remains ninth in the Championship but is just eight points behindEsteban Ocon (Force India) tenth. His teammate Daniil Kvyat was less successful as he ended his race in the wall.

The Spaniard published a photo showing the state of his accelerator pedal after the Singapore GP.

Yes.. its the throttle pedal… had a good feeling with it today and pushed it hard at times. pic.twitter.com/1uG75HHVkk

- Carlos Sainz (@ Carlossainz55) September 17, 2017

Discover the analysis of the Singapore GP carried out by our special correspondents in issue 2132 of AUTOhebdo, available from Monday evening in digital version on all platforms, and from Wednesday on newsstands.