Carlos Sainz believes he can convert his shock front-row begin into what could be his first podium consequence for Williams after benefiting from a chaotic qualifying session on the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Sainz will line up second alongside pole-sitter Max Verstappen after acing his first flying lap of Q3 earlier than purple flags for crashes for Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri interrupted the session.
By the point Q3 resumed, circumstances had cooled and lightweight rain was sprinkling the circuit. Solely Verstappen was in a position to get inside 0.1s of the Spaniard’s banker lap, securing Sainz a spot on the entrance row.
It’s Williams’s first front-row begin because the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix, which George Russell was a second-place end, albeit with none racing laps being accomplished.
That consequence stays Williams’s most up-to-date podium. Earlier than that, the group’s earlier such trophy was claimed by Lance Stroll on the 2017 Azerbaijan GP.
Requested what his purpose for the race could be, Sainz responded: “Attempt to stick it on the rostrum. I will give it my finest to present Williams a primary podium.”
Later he added: “We’ll try to hold it constant, see the tempo of the automobile versus each one of many leaders that may try to come by means of. Should you take a look at our lengthy runs yesterday, we had been truly fairly fast, so I’m hopeful that we are able to go for it tomorrow.”
A podium-size haul of factors would go a way in the direction of shrinking the hole between him and teammate Alex Albon, who has led Williams for many of the season. The Thai driver, who crashed out of Q1 in Baku and can begin nineteenth, is seventh on the title desk with 70 factors, 11 locations and 54 factors forward of Sainz.
Whereas much less has separated the teammates in qualifying, that is comfortably Sainz’s finest Saturday consequence for Williams, his earlier high-water mark having been a trio of sixths between Jeddah and Imola. The Spaniard’s final front-row begin was for Ferrari ultimately yr’s Las Vegas Grand Prix.
“Sadly, this yr has simply been a kind of years the place nothing comes collectively in the case of Sundays and outcomes,” he stated, defending his outcomes. “However immediately simply proves that my velocity is there – that every time I put good laps collectively and nothing occurs to us, I’m fast.
“At this time in quali I felt good, and most significantly, we stored the automobile constant by means of the weekend. At any time when there was an opportunity to place a lap collectively – which there weren’t many; I feel I did in complete three or 4 laps immediately in quali given the purple flags – the lap was good.
“I’ve the velocity, and so long as that’s there, I don’t fear. Simply having a little bit of dangerous luck or too many racing incidents lately and never with the ability to get all of the factors that we deserve as a group is hard. But when the velocity is there and we’re working nicely on subsequent yr’s automobile, it doesn’t fear me.”
