Carlos Sainz’s success in Mexico depends on several factors: many were against him at the beginning

Carlos Sainz starts at the first position at Formula 1 Mexican GP this Sunday (9:00 pm) and has a great chance to achieve his second victory of the season, which would be the Madrid native’s 4th victory in Formula 1. However, in Austinstarting in first position does not guarantee anything. Carlos’s chances in Mexico depend on many factors, among them, a very complicated start for someone starting from the first place.

1. Slipstream and lots of distance to turn 1:

The main difficulty and the first thing Carlos Sainz had to face to achieve success was the start. Between the first position on the grid and the first corner of the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez there is a lot of distance, specifically, 820 meters. This means that, unlike other Grand Prix, the options for those starting from 2nd to 4th on the grid are great. beat Carlos Sainz down the middle of the straight to attack him at turn 1.

To avoid this, the man from Madrid has to have a good reaction to the traffic lights and defend himself, trying to be aggressive in turn 1, but be careful: next to him he has nothing but the champion, Max Verstappen, and the third is Norris, who needs to take risks to avoid losing more points than Max in the fight for the title.

“In the beginning there is not much to do. It is a pole that in 50% of cases the one who started first keeps it in turn 1, and the other half does not make it. In any case, it is better to start from pole if not he came out too much, among those who come out especially in 3rd and 4th place, the slipstream is very strong.“, said Marc Gené on ‘DAZN’ after Carlos’ pole position. For his part, Sainz Sr. emphasized that “it’s not the best circuit to start in pole position”, but he hopes his son can solve the situation.

In that sense, the stats say a lot about how tough Sainz will have it. Of the 23 GPs held at Hermanos Rodríguez, the polesitter won only 10 times (43.47%) for the 4 victories of those who started in 2nd, 6 were achieved by pilots who started in third place and two were achieved from fourth place.

Carlos knows this and his only plan is to make a good start, go as fast as possible and defend himself in everything: “You have to go out at full throttle and I also depend on the others. I have to concentrate on making a good start. Obviously, if I start well I will lose less and I will defend Turn 1 as much as I can “he commented.

“But there is also a lot of slipstream. If they have a good top speed and a good engine they can pass you even before Turn 1, so I have to concentrate on myself, make a good start and then trust my instincts and the braking.”Carlos revealed to ‘DAZN’.

2. If you lose the lead, be careful…

Carlos Sainz had a good race pace, according to the data, and in Austin it was clear that the Ferrari was the car that took care of the tires best. The car’s strong point is its breakdown and Sunday’s speed. Starting from that base, Carlos Sainz has a great weapon to win. But if he loses the lead at Turn 1, victory could be very complicated because overtaking is not easy and because there are other elements that could come into play that could prevent him from achieving the devastating pace he showed in Austin.

“In Austin, I will tell you that you don’t have to worry because one way or another, you passed. But in Mexico it is more difficult to pass. I will not say that it is like Monaco, but Mexico is not Austin either. It’s very difficult to follow the car in front, the “Car is hot (following another) and so are the tires and you can’t show your speed. So I still think that leaving the first corner in the first position gives the. you are many.”explained Carlos. Sainz on ‘ESPN’.

In that sense, if Carlos loses first place, the temperature of the brakes will be the key, as Marc Gené acknowledged.

“It is better to exit the first corner 1st because here the management of the brake temperature is very important. If you are in traffic, the problem increases a lot,” said Catalan..

3. The race pace of Sainz and his Ferrari: very good

However, as he said Marc Geneeven though Carlos Sainz was overtaken by several riders at the start, all was not lost. “With his form, even if he loses position at the beginning, I think he will have a chance to regain the lead,” commented Marc..

Ferrari’s great strength is the breakdown and speed of the race on Sunday. So, if tire wear is high and drivers need to manage the tires to stop, Ferrari can be a great car to choose for comeback and victory.

However, if the damage is not too high, things will be more complicated. If this is the case and Carlos retains first place, he will have options to escape given how difficult it is to follow the front car in Mexico, although the battle against Red Bull and McLaren could be open as Ferrari will no longer do so. . have the strength of the best rubber care.

4. The fight for the title can be a race judge

The battle between Max Verstappen (2nd) and Lando Norris (3rd) could also influence the final result. If the two meet at the exit, there may be movement. And if they fight for race position, after the Austin controversy, that could benefit Carlos.

“Obviously the goal is to win the race, it’s the best I can do for the team and the constructors’ championship. I have two drivers behind who also play a lot (Verstappen, 2nd, and Norris, 3rd). , in fight for the title) and there will definitely be action on the track, but it will be fun and you have to enjoy it”explained Carlos.