Ferrari finally find their chief strategist – and it’s Carlos Sainz
The twitchiness on the Ferrari pit wall was palpable. With five laps to go at the end of Sunday’s thrilling Singapore Grand Prix, less than two seconds separated race leader Carlos Sainz in first to Lewis Hamilton in fourth. McLaren’s Lando Norris in second was closing in, within the critical one-second DRS range. The warning from Sainz’s race engineer Riccardo Adami was quick: “Lando, 0.8 (seconds) behind with DRS.” But the Spaniard was a step ahead, deploying a meticulous balancing act which ultimately secured his second Formula 1 victory. “Yeah, it’s on purpose,” he replied. At which point it all made sense. For a team chasing its first victory in over a year, often maligned for their clangers in the strategy department, all it took was a clear sense of thought and direction from the driver in the cockpit. Sainz was not overly concerned with Norris’ pace behind him. On the contrary, the double threat posed by Mercedes’ George Russell and Hamilton, lapping over a second-a-lap quicker on fresh tyres in third and fourth, was the main focus of his thinking. What a fine balancing act it was. Keep Norris close enough behind him – one-second – to give him a crucial speed boost on the straights to defend from Russell, but not so close that Norris himself could make a move for the top spot. In the end, it was a masterstroke which worked to perfection. “I knew more or less my pace versus Lando and how difficult it is to overtake here,” Sainz explained afterwards. “I knew he was on a hard and if George and Lewis were going to overtake, I would be dead meat also. So I needed him to hold on for as long as possible. “A couple of laps I was 1.2 or 1.3 seconds ahead of Lando so I slowed down a bit to give him DRS into turn seven, which was just enough for him to hold onto them and keep my race under control. Not easy, because you are putting yourself under risk and you cannot do any mistakes, but it was my strategy and it worked.” Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur, beaming after securing his first win at the helm of the Scuderia, confirmed the ploy was Sainz’s idea. “He knew he was more at risk with Mercedes than with Norris,” the Frenchman said. “With Norris we had the same tyres and almost the same pace from the lap one. We were not really at risk with Norris except if we lost the tyres, so it was a clever move from Carlos to keep Norris into the DRS.” It was fitting that Norris was the beneficiary, too. Sainz and the Brit were team-mates at McLaren for two years and are still close friends. Norris admitted that the DRS-boost was “very generous” and despite finishing 0.812 seconds behind first place, was delighted with a ninth career podium. Still, that first win continues to elude him. As for Russell? The desire, bordering on desperation, to win in the end was his undoing. A light tip with the wall derailed his Mercedes on the final lap, slamming into the wall. It was a harsh, dramatic conclusion to the 62-lap, high-humidity race for the Brit, with Hamilton instead taking the final podium spot. Mercedes boss Toto Wolff insisted post-race that it would be an “arm round the shoulder” approach rather than any in-depth post-mortem. Quite right too, given Russell’s bold approach almost gave him a brilliant come-from-behind victory. But more so than Russell’s mistake and Sainz’s mastery, what Sunday really showed us – quite depressingly in a way – is what this season could have looked like. With Red Bull startlingly out of the picture – impacted by a lack of tyre grip and car balance on a notorious outlier of a circuit on the F1 calendar – the ensuing battle between Ferrari, McLaren and Mercedes was enthralling to watch. The battle behind the No 1 team has been tight all year. Only this time, it was for first place. The Marina Bay Street Circuit spelled the end of Max Verstappen’s win streak and talk of an unprecedented perfect season for Red Bull. The flying Dutchman, who finished fifth after starting in 11th, can now not clinch his third world title in Japan this weekend, with his crowning moment likely to come a fortnight later in Qatar. Yet a return to a typical circuit at Suzuka will likely see Christian Horner’s team return to the top. Ferrari’s pace uptake in the last two races, having taken pole in Monza two weeks ago too, has undoubtedly created a sense of intrigue, a spark of something different in a season of Red Bull domination. Moving forward, though, there is plenty to learn and maintain for Ferrari after Sainz’s supreme Sunday drive. No more should chaos reign in the strategy department. No more should “Plans A-F” be bawled out over team radio, confusing drivers and spectators alike. No more should Sainz and Charles Leclerc sit idly by while choices on the pit wall dampen their aspirations. Sometimes it’s best to keep things simple – and leave the in-race decisions to the men behind the wheel. The team’s hunt for chief strategists was easier than they thought. Read More Carlos Sainz holds on for thrilling victory in Singapore as Red Bull winning run ends George Russell despondent after last-lap crash in Singapore Max Verstappen makes prediction for Japan after his winning run ends F1 Singapore Grand Prix LIVE: Race updates and times at Marina Bay Lance Stroll cleared to race in Singapore after high-speed qualifying crash F1 Juniors broadcast an admirable idea – but all kids want to be is grown up
2023-09-18 19:53
Why was Fox News' 'Watters' World' canceled? Jesse Watters faced multiple controversies while hosting show
Jesse Watters, who hosted Fox News' 'Watters' World' between 2015 and 2022, got popular due to his on-the-street interviews
2023-09-18 19:53
Tennis star Andrey Rublev compared to Zeus after winning a 'lightning bolt'
Tennis star Andrey Rublev has been compared to the ancient Greek god Zeus after winning a lightning bolt trophy. The Russian tennis player earned the incredible prize after winning the Ultimate Tennis Showdown (UTS) event in Frankfurt, Germany. It was the player’s debut appearance on the UTS Tour and he clinched victory over Bulgarian tennis pro Grigor Dimitrov in the final. The UTS Tour event sees tennis played in a different format from the ATP Tour. In the event, matches are played in eight-minute quarters, players get one serve only and there are just 15 seconds given between points. Rublev came out on top in the final of the eight-man event, beating his opponent and close friend Dimitrov 14-13, 12-17, 11-10, 17-16. To reward him for his win, Rublev was handed a huge lightning bolt-shaped trophy that had people comparing him to the sky and thunder god of ancient Greece, Zeus. One tennis-themed X/Twitter account wrote: “Andrey Rublev looks so natural holding a lightning bolt in his hand. “UTS Frankfurt Champion. King of lightning & thunder.” Another fan commented: “Zeus.” One person merged the two names together, coming up with: “Andrey Zeusblev.” “He looks like a Nordic God here, so mighty,” wrote another admirer. Someone else commented: “That might be the coolest trophy I have ever seen.” The trophy even had some celebrity admirers, with Alexis Ohanian, Reddit co-founder and husband of former tennis star Serena Williams, posting: “Amazing trophy design.” Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.
2023-09-18 19:53
Stocks, dollar drift lower in central bank-packed week
By Nell Mackenzie and Stella Qiu LONDON (Reuters) -World shares and the dollar slipped on Monday as growth concerns tested
2023-09-18 19:52
What Jeremy Doku has learned since joining Man City
Man City winger Jeremy Doku explains what he has already learned since joining the club from Rennes in summer.
2023-09-18 19:27
Joby Selects Dayton, Ohio, Birthplace of Aviation, For First Scaled Manufacturing Facility
SANTA CRUZ, Calif. & DAYTON, Ohio--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sep 18, 2023--
2023-09-18 19:27
Martin Odegaard believes competition for places is healthy for Arsenal
Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard welcomes the increased competition within the squad – highlighted by manager Mikel Arteta now choosing to rotate his two goalkeepers – as he believes it will make them stronger. David Raya, who signed on loan from Brentford and on whom the Gunners have a £27million option to buy, made his debut in the 1-0 victory at Goodison Park, which extended their unbeaten start to five matches. It means England international Aaron Ramsdale’s position as established number one is likely to be challenged over the coming weeks, but Odegaard said that principle should apply to the whole squad. That was evident as Leandro Trossard came off the bench for the injured Gabriel Martinelli to score the only goal in the second half, but it is the position of goalkeeper which is set to remain the major talking point. “I think it showed the depth in the squad now. We have so many quality players, the players on the bench can come on and change the game if we need it,” said the Norway international. “The competition for places is huge and I think that is a great thing for us and helps a lot. “You see in training every day the quality we have so everyone has to be on their best every day in training and that’s a good thing and will help us improve as a team as well.” On Ramsdale’s response to being dropped at Goodison Park, having started England’s friendly victory over Scotland just a few days previously, Odegaard added: “I think he will just keep working hard, like he is always doing. “He was there supporting us, cheering for us, helping us. He is a great character and he showed a very good response today by backing his team-mates, being there and giving us energy. “Excellent from him. We have two good goalkeepers there and it’s big competition. “Two top goalkeepers, different qualities, and both so good on the ball and in the goal as well. “We are lucky to have two such good goalkeepers and we will see who will play, but both of them are excellent.” Victory at Goodison Park, where they had not won in their previous five visits, was psychologically important to keep pace with the rest of their top-four rivals and the manner of the performance, having to grind out three points despite not being at their best, was pleasing for the Gunners captain. “It was a tough one. We knew it was a tough place to come, it’s been a tough place for Arsenal for a long time, but I think we did really well and deserved the win as well so very happy,” he added. “It’s a tough team and they play a bit different, and we had to deal with a lot of different things. “But we knew it would be a tough game, but were ready for it and I think we did really well on the pitch to fight and get the goal in the end so credit to the team and happy for the win.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Lewis Ludlam urges booing fans to keep the faith after England’s win over Japan Leon Smith believes Great Britain have a chance of Davis Cup glory in Malaga Big-spending Chelsea rarely threaten in drab goalless draw at Bournemouth
2023-09-18 19:25
Kosovo's prime minister blames EU envoy for the failure of recent talks with Serbia
Kosovo’s prime minister has accused the European Union special envoy in the normalization talks with Serbia of not being “neutral and correct.”
2023-09-18 19:24
Wolfgang Van Halen refuses to cover his dad's songs
Eddie Van Halen's son Wolfgang Van Halen refuses to cover his dad's songs at his shows because he feels it's important to 'prove himself' and be his 'own musician'
2023-09-18 19:23
Jones vows to protect Wallabies fly-half Gordon against Wales
Australia coach Eddie Jones admitted on Monday he will have to find a way to better protect young fly-half Carter Gordon after the playmaker had a horror show in the...
2023-09-18 19:17
Olivia Dunne celebrates National Gymnastics Day with her impeccable moves while sharing best memories
Dunne displayed her impeccable performance on the uneven bars, while showcasing her flexibility in two clean swings and one flawless mid-air flip
2023-09-18 19:16
Does Katy Perry 'know about Russell Brand': Inside the final dark days of singer's marriage to comedian
Katy Perry had noted that their relationship was severely strained by Russell Brand's 'very controlling' attitude
2023-09-18 18:58