Sainz: 35-40kph wind gust caused Hungarian GP F1 qualifying crash

Sainz crashed out of qualifying midway through Q2, losing the rear of his Ferrari at the final corner.

The crash leaves Sainz set to start 15th on the grid for Sunday’s grand prix having looked like he could challenge for a top-five grid position during practice.

“Yes, very frustrating but I’m also, to be honest, very surprised,” Sainz explained after qualifying. “It’s a mistake I haven’t done in a long time and also I was very surprised with it, so I went straight away into the garage to see what had happened, on the data, and what I could have done differently.

“After having a look at it I’m actually more calm about it, I can say I entered the corner 5 kph slower than on the previous run, but there was a 35/40kph gust of wind, compared to the 10 kph wind we had in Q1, and that’s probably what sent me into a massive oversteer.

“It’s unfortunate but, at the same time, I don’t want to use it as an excuse, I think I owe an apology to the team, but, at the same time, it’s something I’m not going to dwell too much on, because I’ve seen the data and that has helped me to calm down about it a bit more.”

The Spaniard said he had to check the data immediately after qualifying as he “couldn’t believe” that he spun after taking less speed into the final couple of corners.

“You’re always trying, always adjusting and on the previous lap I had had massive understeer, lost a bit on the exit, so that time I wanted to brake a bit earlier and try to carry a bit less understeer into the corner, so at the point I lost the car I was going slower than the lap before and that’s why I went to see the data, to see what I had done wrong, because I couldn’t believe it. It’s how it goes, luckily I’m not a driver that tends to do these mistakes a lot, so I’ll learn from it and recover quickly,” Sainz added.

Teammate Charles Leclerc progressed into Q3 but could only manage seventh, behind AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly and McLaren’s Lando Norris.

Hungaroring’s tight and twisty layout was expected to suit Ferrari, leaving Leclerc disappointed he couldn’t qualify as best of the rest behind the two Mercedes and Red Bulls.

“Yes, we did, it’s a shame, really,” Leclerc said. “I think we lost something from Q2 onwards, the feeling was not exactly the same as it had been before, so it’s a shame, but it’s like this.

“In Q1 we looked very promising, especially with Carlos, we had different plans, I expected to be a bit behind him there, but from Q2 onwards, with the change of wind direction, I started struggling with the rear of the car, and, speaking with Carlos, he also struggled with those same issues.

“So, we need to understand what we can do better with the car for tomorrow, obviously we can’t change the set-up, but the front wing or something to try and help us driving.”