MELBOURNE.- The Ferrari driver, Carlos Sainzended Red Bull’s dominance in Formula 1 and won the Australian Grand Prix after Max Verstappen had to retire, just two weeks after the Spaniard missed the previous race in Saudi Arabia due to an emergency appendectomy.
Sainz, who started from the front row alongside Verstappen, maintained position on the first lap, but then passed the Dutchman on the second to take the lead and controlled the race after his rival retired two laps later due to a fiery failure. in the engine.
Verstappen had won his first two races of the season, in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, and had nine consecutive victories.
Sainz finished ahead of teammate Charles Leclerc in Ferrari’s first 1-2 result since the 2022 Bahrain Grand Prix, with Lando Norris’ McLaren in third position, its first podium finish at Albert Park.
His teammate, Australian Oscar Piastri, was fourth.
The race ended under the virtual safety car, so there was no contest for most of the final lap, after Mercedes driver George Russell crashed at turn seven. Sergio Pérez’s Red Bull completed the top five, one position higher than the Mexican, after a three-place penalty for cutting off Nico Hülkenberg in the qualifying rounds.
Two-time Spanish world champion Fernando Alonso finished sixth on the track, but dropped to eighth after stewards gave him a 20-second penalty and three points from his license for driving “potentially in a dangerous manner.” in the last lap battle with Russell.
Alonso eased off the accelerator just over 100 meters earlier than he had entering turn six during the race, while Russell, behind him, lost control and crashed on the exit of the turn.
Sainz, who will be replaced by Lewis Hamilton at Ferrari from 2025, was delighted to take the third victory of his career against all odds, his first since the Singapore Grand Prix last year.
“I felt very good there,” he said. “Of course, a little stiff, especially physically. It wasn’t the easiest, but I was lucky that I was more or less on my own so I could manage my pace, manage the wheels, manage everything.”
Start of the year for Sainz:
“Sometimes life is crazy. What happened at the beginning of the year, then the podium in Bahrain, then the addendum, the return, the victory, is a roller coaster. But I loved it”.
Minutes after his retirement, Verstappen was seen by television cameras in a heated argument with team boss Christian Horner.
Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton also retired near the start after his engine failed on lap 17.
The 26-year-old Dutchman complained on the team radio that he “was losing the car.” Shortly after, smoke began to come out of the back of the car, forcing him to enter the pits, with no hope of returning.
Verstappen won 19 races last season – the most in history – to win his third consecutive title. The Dutch driver’s lead in the drivers’ championship was reduced from 15 points to four, with Leclerc in second place. Verstappen has 51 units and Leclerc 47.
Source: AP
