Sainz 'Pleasantly Surprised' By Being Able To Keep Up With Red Bull In Bahrain

Sunday, 03 March 2024 at 01:00

Carlos Sainz was "pleasantly surprised" after scoring a podium for Ferrari during the first race of the 2024 season.

The Scuderia Ferrari F1 driver started the race from P4 after putting in the fourth fastest lap in Q3 of the qualifying session on Friday at Bahrain International Circuit.

It wasn't clear how Ferraris would measure against Red Bulls in terms of race pace, but the Spanish driver kept his expectations low ahead of the race as he suggested the Austrian team with Max Verstappen would be stronger.

The 29-year-old turned out to be correct as the Dutchman finished the 2024 Bahrain Grand Prix more than 22 seconds ahead of everyone. However, that wasn't the case with the second Red Bull driver.

Read also

2024 Bahrain Grand Prix - Race Results & Summary

Although Sainz didn't manage to overtake Sergio Perez, he did manage to keep pace with the Mexican driver, maintaining a 3-second gap between the two of them and crossing the finish line in P3. He told the media after the race:

"I felt really good out there today. The start wasn't ideal, but from then on, I just managed my tires well, and then from there, I could do my pace, overtook two or three cars on the way to the podium, and then kept up with a Red Bull there at the end, which was a pleasant surprise."

The Spaniard overtook his teammate Charles Leclerc, who was managing an issue, twice during the race as the Monegasque driver got in front of him with an undercut.

Ferrari wanted to come closer to Red Bull in 2024, and while the Italian team can match the Championship leader in qualifying sessions, they still lack a lot in race pace. Sainz added:

"Still, not enough. Not where we want to be. But a good step forward compared to last year and a solid start to the season."