The Spaniard from Ferrari felt he could do well right from Friday and he demonstrated it with a dream weekend: takes pole position, the sixth of his career but the first of this season, after two laps on the edge of perfection and climbs to the top step of the podium at the end of the Mexican GP race. Sainz confirmed his feeling with the car after his second place in Austin, demonstrating great consistency and reliability on the track. The only thing that worried him was the start, where he was overtaken by Verstappen. In the second restart after the contact between Tsunoda and Albon, he regained the position he had gained in qualifying and set times like a metronome.
One last victory before the final goodbyes
“I felt the support of the crowd all weekend, it’s incredible! They gave me so much strength today. I needed this win, I wanted to win one last time before leaving Ferrari,” Sainz said at the end of the Mexican GP race. “Now there are four races left and I want to enjoy them as much as possible and if another opportunity presents itself I will try to take it.” A weekend dominated from start to finish. A supremacy only worried by Verstappen’s Red Bull, filed away with an emotional overtaking move: “I hadn’t prepared him, I was annoyed by having lost the position on him. I thought I had to surprise him because he is difficult to overtake. I had nothing to lose and I braked very late in turn 1. With Max you have to do the same, you have to be aggressive or you will never pass him.”
We knew we could win the Mexican GP race
Sainz brought Ferrari back to the top step of the podium in Mexico for the first time since 1990: “All week I felt like it could be my weekend. My family is here to support me, as well as this incredible cheering. They have always been by my side in this difficult year. I have performed well all season, I deserved this win. I was already strong in Austin, but here I felt I could win, this shows how strong the power of the mind is. We were perfect”.
