Sainz and Albon reflect on challenging day at Chinese GP as Williams drivers face difficulties
Red Bull Racing/Red Bull Content Pool
Carlos Sainz described a “tough day” after Sprint Qualifying (SQ) in P13 at the Chinese Grand Prix, expressing his struggles with the balance of his new Williams car. After one practice session on the newly resurfaced Shanghai circuit, Sainz faced elimination risks twice, ultimately placing 13th for Saturday’s Sprint.
Reflecting on his performance, Sainz said, “We’re struggling with some balance problems, especially in SQ2. Not knowing where to find the lap time and a bit of overdriving, and a problem with the seat. Too many issues meant we couldn’t go through, but we’ll try to learn from it for Quali tomorrow.”
Sainz admitted to struggles during the practice session and emphasized the need to get more miles and understand the car better. “Just getting the laps in. I feel I am still short of mileage with learning the car and how to drive it, especially when it comes to Qualifying,” he noted.
Conversely, Alex Albon, Sainz’s teammate, progressed to SQ3 and qualified ninth for the Sprint. Albon was fairly content with his performance but highlighted areas for improvement. “Not bad, pretty happy. We need to make some changes to the car balance. Tyres are very sensitive here and hard to get into a good place,” he remarked.
Discussing tyre management, Albon said, “I’ve been feeling confident with the car but just struggling to get the tyres to do what I want them to do. It’s not that comfortable.”
Looking ahead to Saturday’s Sprint, Albon predicted a managing race due to tyre graining. “Graining’s going to be a big talking point, the fronts especially, so unfortunately it might look a bit boring in the first few laps, then you’ll see a bit of a race towards the end,” Albon concluded.
The focus now shifts to Saturday’s Sprint and Qualifying for the main Grand Prix, where both drivers aim to leverage lessons learned from Friday’s sessions.
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