Carlos Sainz: 2022 F1 Mexican GP 'was a good race for me' after not 'doing a race in a month'

Despite Ferrari's slow pace, Carlos Sainz feels that the 2022 F1 Mexican Grand Prix was indeed a 'good race' for him. Given that he was forced into retirement in the previous two races, the Spaniard claimed that finishing the race was considerably better for him.

Speaking to Autosport, Sainz stated that he would rather focus on the positive side of the event, saying:

"I'd prefer to focus on the positives that I know it was a good race for me, and finally without doing a race in a month, to be back in the car and to do a strong race, good pace, it was at least something positive."

Carlos Sainz has faced a bit too much bad luck in the past month during the Japanese and US GP. At the start of the Japanese GP amid the downpour, the Spaniard aquaplaned and crashed out. This led to a safety car and the race was later red-flagged due to heavy rain.

Although he clinched pole position in Austin, his luck didn't work when George Russell collided with him on the first turn of the first lap. He suffered major damage (an apparent water leak) and had to retire right after. This made the Mexican GP his first race in over a month where he actually had the chance to compete.

Speaking about the results in Mexico, Sainz revealed that he did not struggle with the control of the car, contrary to what spectators speculated. Instead, he claimed that there was difficulty with the pace, saying:

"Handling yes, pace no. Handling I was comfortable, I could do consistent lap times, decent tyre management, but we were just slow. Unfortunately, we didn't pick up any pace compared to quali."

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Carlos Sainz reveals Ferrari was aware of their slow pace in Mexico City

During the qualifying session, Ferrari were not competitive enough with those at the front. While Red Bull and Mercedes steered clear of the other teams, Ferrari could only qualify P5 and P7. It was evident that the team was struggling, and so was Carlos Sainz.

Stating that the Scuderia already knew about the slow pace, the Spaniard said:

"We know the compromises we had to take for this weekend, we knew going into the race that we were going to be slow."

Carlos Sainz started the race P5 and that was also his position when he crossed the checkered flag. Race winner Max Verstappen, however, was 58 seconds clear of him, evidencing the Scuderia's lack of pace in the Middle American city. The Spaniard, however, believes his team will be prepared for the remaining two races of the season and expects a better result.