![](https://i2.wp.com/cdn-4.motorsport.com/images/amp/6b7D3Qv0/s6/carlos-sainz-ferrari-sf-24.jpg?w=1200&resize=1200,0&ssl=1)
Another qualifying, another difficult moment for Ferrari which, taking advantage of Oscar Piastri’s time canceled due to exceeding the track limits, finished with a fourth and sixth place. Although it is not a negative result in absolute terms, on the other hand, as yesterday, what weighs above all is the gap from the top, by as much as five and a half tenths.
On the other hand, however, the positive aspect is that the gap from McLaren is much smaller than what the standings might suggest at first glance, given that the gap compared to Lando Norris, who also finished in second place today, has dropped below one and a half tenths.
According to Carlos Sainz, this is also due to the fact that between the sprint race and qualifying, Ferrari pushed for more aggressive changes that, however, brought the car closer to the limit, making it more difficult for the driver to manage the car on the track and find the best possible feeling. In part, this is also evident in Charles Leclerc’s “all in” attempt at the end, which led him to make two mistakes in the space of three corners.
Carlos Sainz, Ferrari SF-24
Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images
The Spaniard, on the contrary, made the most of his lap, taking a fourth final position which, despite being on the dirty side of the grid, will allow him to remain in the top positions in the first phase of the race, especially in the Mercedes zone, the team that Ferrari sees as its true rival this weekend.
“It’s a very difficult weekend. But overall, it seems like we’re struggling a bit in the last few races. We seem to be way behind Red Bull and McLaren, while we’re fighting with Mercedes in the race, sprints and qualifying, but it seemed to me that maybe they had a bit of an advantage over us.”
“We made some changes in qualifying that could make the car faster but also a little more on the limit and it was very difficult to put a lap together. But I’m happy, because we did a good lap and we’re in fourth place. I would have been happy if they had told me before qualifying.”
Sainz once again identified a major theme for the difficulties encountered in qualifying, namely the return of bouncing which, Sainz admitted, could be linked to the updates that recently debuted in Barcelona: “It could be linked to the updates,” said the Spanish driver.
![Carlos Sainz, Ferrari SF-24](https://cdn.motorsport.com/images/mgl/68yZd1Q0/s1000/carlos-sainz-ferrari-sf-24.jpg)
Carlos Sainz, Ferrari SF-24
Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
“Without going into too much detail, I think it’s a combination of us not being effective in the high-speed corners and at the same time having to manage the bouncing, which makes our high-speed excessively slow,” added Sainz, rightly pointing out that the SF-24 was already struggling in the high-speed corners, as shown in other rounds of the championship, but the bouncing added another layer of difficulty.
“For this reason, at Turn 7 and Turn 9, we have a tenth of a gap from Max in each corner. It’s very difficult to make up that tenth on the rest of the track, because we are almost equal at low speeds. So yes, that’s it. But yes, we are already working at home to try to understand this new package and the rebounding issue, as well as how we could improve it.”
However, Sainz underlined that the new package actually showed the expected improvements in other parts of the track, i.e. those where rebounds do not become a problem that forces setup compromises, further highlighting the Red’s weak points.
![Carlos Sainz, Scuderia Ferrari](https://cdn.motorsport.com/images/mgl/68yZapX0/s1000/carlos-sainz-scuderia-ferrari.jpg)
Carlos Sainz, Scuderia Ferrari
Photo by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
“We see it working in all the places where there’s no bouncing, but… But if you get the high-speed bounces and you have to manage, then maybe what you gain in some places you lose in others. Obviously here on this track it has a bigger effect, because the more high-speed areas you have, the slower you are. So yeah, it’s not ideal but, as I said, the team is pushing hard at home to try and solve the problem and see how we can come back stronger at Silverstone.”
Sainz preaches calm, because on the one hand he knows what needs to be worked on at the moment and it is not the first time he has underlined this thought. On the other hand, however, it is important to highlight how the others are making progress at a better pace than Ferrari.
“I believe that Monaco is always a unique circuit. People, after winning in Monaco and getting on the podium, thought we could become world champions. But I always kept calm, as we were coming off difficult weekends in Suzuka and China and I knew that on these tracks with long, high-load corners, practically normal tracks, we are not at the level of Red Bull and McLaren.”
“And if you add to that the fact that Mercedes has made a great step forward, then suddenly it seems like the situation is difficult. But we have made our steps forward, we have improved the car. It’s just that the others are improving more, it’s a tight race at the top.”
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