Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz was quite happy to take his first Formula One pole position, while admitting he did not expect to take P1 for the 2022 British Grand Prix on Saturday.
Sainz took just 0.072 seconds ahead of Verstappen on the last lap, while his Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc finished third. Teammate Leclerc was full of praise for the Spaniard, however, saying he was targeting Ferrari a couple of times on Sunday.
British Grand Prix: Lewis Hamilton Hoping to Give Home Fans Something to Celebrate
“Obviously an emotional first pole position, it’s always special, no? Especially to do it in the wet at Silverstone, it feels great,” Sainz was quoted as saying by Formula One.
“Confidence is high. I can keep the lead and try to do my own running from the start.”
“In the end, I decided to push for a few laps and put a good lap on the board which didn’t sound surprising, but it turned out to be pole position, so, good. Pole position, it was a bit of a surprise,” he said .
“I didn’t know what I had to do on that lap to get to the pole. I believed it probably wouldn’t be enough. Then it was enough and I was so happy to hear that, but my ‘lap was not there’ That’s what it meant. In the end a lot of times in these circumstances, it’s about putting it all together and putting a good lap on the board; not the most optimal, perfect lap of your life.”
So Sainz will be leading the grid for the first time in his F1 career, and now he wants to convert it into his first win.
“Leading a formation lap would be great at Ferrari, I think, and for the first time I’ll do it. I guess I haven’t forgotten since I’ve led a formation lap World Series by Renault. I think I’ve led a few races in Formula 1, I think it was in Portimao, and it felt great. That’s the goal, to do it again.
Teammate Leclerc is in third place and third in the championship, 46 points behind Verstappen. He praised Sainz and said it was “most important” for Ferrari to give a one-two, which would be their first win since Round 3 in Australia.
“I’m happy for Carlos; he did a great job today. I used to spin that last lap, I knew this was the lap where I had to put everything together and I wasn’t there as a driver, so I didn’t deserve to be on pole,” Leclerc said.
“I think, of course, I’ll be very happy if Carlos wins the race tomorrow, so I’m not going to hide that I want to win too. But I think what’s most important is that we have a- Eliminate two, whichever way it is. And if we can make strategic moves around the cars I’m pretty sure we will. So, let’s see how tomorrow goes, but again, I’m going to have to go through the car. Felt confident with it, so let’s wait and see.”
read all breaking news, today’s fresh newswatch top videos And live TV Here.