The man of the moment is undoubtedly Carlos Sainz. The Spaniard was the hero of Melbourne, with the beautiful victory achieved just two weeks after his appendicitis operation. This result also saw his value rise in the driver market, emerging as a crucial player ahead of 2025. With his morale high and his body clearly progressing compared to the previous races, the Ferrari driver spoke about his expectations for Suzuka.
SAINZ BACK TO FULL FITNESS
Two weeks ago, Sainz’s physical condition was unknown. Ferrari reserve Oliver Bearman was even on stand-by to replace him again – in the event that Sainz was struggling in Free Practice. In Suzuka, however, Sainz is now fully recovered:
“After the victory in Melbourne, I spent a few days relaxing, but the best thing was being able to go back to work on the physical preparation side now that the injury caused by the surgery on The appendix doesn’t cause me any big problems anymore.
“This weekend, I will be 100% in and out of the car. I’m back on the bike and in the gym.” The Spaniard has shown an excellent level of competitiveness at the start of 2024:
“The goal is always the same, every year: to always improve to be a better version of yourself. I think that in life, it’s kind of the approach that everyone has to take. I like to say that this year I took another small step forward as a driver and as an athlete.
“We started the season well, but yes, Melbourne is a victory. It is a race that has already passed, and now we focus on Suzuka to see if we can continue well .”
THE COMPARISON WITH RED BULL: “WE NEED AN UPDATE”
There is great curiosity to see what the balance of power between Ferrari and Red Bull will be on a track like Suzuka. In the press conference, Sainz recalled how the gap was evident in the race held in Japan last autumn:
“It will be a challenging track for us. I think last year was one of our most difficult weekends compared to Red Bull. Four or five months ago, we were here, I think, at seven or eight-tenths. So it’s time to see where we are this year and figure out if we can at least be closer.”
Extending the discussion to what we have seen so far, the Spaniard underlined how Ferrari has reduced the gap from Red Bull. Still, he also outlined how upgrades will be fundamental to take the final step:
“It’s fair to say that in Australia, we seemed very strong, but I think that in these cases, it is enough to take the average of the first three races. And I think the average says we are still a couple of tenths behind Red Bull, and we probably need an upgrade, especially on tracks like Suzuka, to combat them.
“I believe that the work done by the team this year is extremely good because the car represents a very good step forward .”
However, Ferrari is not expected to bring any major upgrades this weekend: “There are no big updates coming here,” confirms Carlos Sainz. “I think we have a very small thing in the car, in the rear, but the big one will come later in the season. And I hope this will be another good step in the same direction.”
CARLOS SAINZ HIS FUTURE TEAMMATE: “I WILL RACE ALONGSIDE THE ONE WHO COMES”
As mentioned at the beginning, Sainz’s name is also very hot on the driver market front. Obviously, the Spaniard hasn’t given any details about talks behind-the-scenes. Rumours have linked him to a Red Bull return alongside Max Verstappen. Still, he made a point in Suzuka that he’s had no shortage of competitive teammates in Formula 1:
“I will run alongside the one who comes. I have no fear or problem running alongside anyone. I’ve already had many teammates in F1 : Verstappen, Leclerc, Norris, Kvyat, Gasly… I’ve never had an easy life, but I’ve always had a good feeling and a good relationship with everyone.”
