The pending accounts at Yas Marina: everything that remains to be resolved in the last race
Turn 3, the fastest at Yas Marina, which can be approached without too many problems with full throttle, hid an unpleasant surprise for Carlos Sainz. “For some reason, the track has undergone some changes and there are two potholes in that area,” explained the Ferrari driver after his accident during the second free practice session of the Abu Dhabi GP.. The collision with the Techpro protections caused severe damage to the left side of the SF-23, including the front wing, flat bottom and rear suspension.. For the second consecutive week, Sainz's weekend was compromised by an external cause, completely outside his jurisdiction.
“It was a costly mistake. “I'm sorry for giving the mechanics extra work today,” added the man from Madrid, who was the victim of a manhole cover in Las Vegas just seven days ago.. On Friday, the reason for his misfortune must have been attributed to the poor condition of the asphalt and bottoming. This acronym describes a situation in which the car hits the asphalt when its suspension reaches the limit.. “Any small bump can cause you a pretty strong blow,” described Sainz, without the ability to control a car affected by the dirty air of an AlphaTauri that was leaving the pit-lane.. At least, unlike that unfair penalty of 10 places on the grid in Las Vegas, Ferrari will not receive any punishment. Because, as Sainz admits, everything is going to be “very tight” in Yas Marina. Especially between Ferrari and Mercedes.
The fight for second place in the Constructors' World Championship will be decided by a margin of four points, the narrowest difference between the two since the beginning of the year.. “If we take into account that a couple of races ago we were at 60, we are on the right track. In any case, four points are nothing or could be a lot,” predicted Fred Vasseur, head of the Scuderia, before traveling to Abu Dhabi.. To be precise, the maximum disadvantage advantage for the people of Maranello was 56 points after the Belgian GP, the last one before the holidays.. Since then, the performance of the SF-23 was much more consistent, managing to mitigate the tire degradation problems that had frustrated its World Cup start.
An unoptimized W14
The victory in Singapore, the only one that Red Bull has missed after 21 races, served as a springboard for Ferrari, which has deducted 41 points from the team led by Toto Wolff during the last seven races.. The most encouraging sign for Vasseur was the speed of the car in qualifying sessions. In fact, in 2023 Ferrari has seven pole positions, for only one for Mercedes. Likewise, the characteristics of Yas Marina, with a combination of long straights and very slow corners, seem to favor the red car, as was evident last Sunday in Las Vegas, when Charles Leclerc was even able to rub shoulders with the Red Bulls..
On the other hand, the Silver Arrows, after a very irregular year, do not find certainties. After the improvement in the flat bottom, introduced in Austin and polished in Mexico, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell are still not maximizing the potential of the W14, a car that was conceived almost without sidepods and whose constant updates never bore fruit.
Honor among Spaniards
To this hand in hand we will have to add other battles of a lesser nature, although of undoubted symbolic weight.. The closest battle will be between Fernando Alonso and Sainz, tied at 200 points, for the honor of finishing as the best Spanish. At this point there is no doubt that the World Championship has become too long for the leader of Aston Martin, who now has to defend his fourth place against the siege of Lando Norris (195 points). After achieving six podiums in the first seven races, the Asturian starts today at a disadvantage against Sainz, author of three podiums, two poles and the aforementioned victory in Marina Bay.
The other hot point of the weekend will be resolved between Sainz and Leclerc, who are playing for supremacy in the Ferrari garage. The Monegasque, pursued by misfortunes of all kinds, could end up behind his teammate again, as in 2021. Part with 12 points of deficit, which is why it would take at least a podium and a ceiling from Carlos to reverse the situation. Another year, his inspired Saturdays have been of little use to him, where he dominates the Madrid native with authority (14-7).