Former GP2 champion impressed by Carlos Sainz after "Alonso-style race" in Australia

26/03/2024 18:40

Davide Valsecchi doesn’t mince words when commenting on Carlos Sainz’s victory in the Australian Grand Prix at the 5.278-kilometre Albert Park Circuit in Melbourne: “Sixteen days after surgery, he’s a bull!” These were his comments on the ValseMotori YouTube channel.

Like many users online, Davide Valsecchi was also impressed by Carlos Sainz’s performance in Melbourne. The former driver questioned whether it was truly fair to sideline him to bring in Lewis Hamilton next year.

“Since joining Ferrari, Carlos Sainz has three wins. Charles Leclerc has three as well. Some say ‘when Leclerc could have won the championship, (Sainz) was a nuisance. Are you sure? What if, as I think, he wasn’t asking the team for strategies that were better at that time? Are you sure he wasn’t working for himself and the team?”

Is it right to replace Carlos Sainz with Lewis Hamilton?
With the facts at hand, the former Sky journalist pondered the paradox: “Three races won by one, three races won by the other. One being let go, the other signed for life. Right now, replacing Carlos Sainz is truly madness.” – the Italian former racing driver and the 2012 GP2 Series champion pointed out.

To support his argument in defense of the Spaniard, Davide Valsecchi mentioned the 2022 Monaco Grand Prix. Amid the chaos caused by the rain, the strategy adopted by driver #55 was correct. “And someone ‘ruined Charles Leclerc’s race.’ When you’re in the heat of the moment, it’s hard to think about your teammate,” said the 2012 GP2 champion.

“Is it right to replace him with Lewis Hamilton, who is a legend, but has that age, while Carlos Sainz is at the peak of his career? He did everything perfectly today, very good in the details, and this year he’s showing tremendous speed.”

“A race in the style of Fernando Alonso”
Davide Valsecchi continued to praise Carlos Sainz’s performance in Melbourne. Perfect in every detail, he put his opponents under pressure. And he ventured a comparison: “This was a race in the style of Fernando Alonso.”

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The former Sky presenter focused on the final detail. On the last lap, the Spaniard opens up on the radio and asks the team to inform Charles Leclerc: he needs to get closer to him, so they can celebrate together on the parade lap. “These are the small selfish acts of the driver, but they are necessary. He doesn’t have a seat yet, and he has 5-6 races to find one. If I were a top team, I’d take him, because this is what a great team does. I thought the same even when many people criticized him for his strategies, because they always worked with him.” – Davide Valsecchi concluded at the end of the Australian Grand Prix.

Source: f1ingenerale

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