Carlos Sainz Jr felt unlucky at the Sochi Autodrom after debris cost him valuable downforce and subsequently valuable time that ultimately lost him the chance of a top ten finish on Sunday.
The Scuderia Toro Rosso driver made a good getaway but found himself running through debris that meant he was forced to stop earlier than expected for his one and only pit stop, and then incurred a ten-second penalty for forcing Jolyon Palmer off-track in a robust overtaking attempt on the Renault driver.
Sainz was embroiled in the late race battle for seventh with Kevin Magnussen, Romain Grosjean, Sergio Perez and Jenson Button, but finished outside the points on the road after Button made a good pass on the Spaniard, while the penalty dropped him to twelfth in the final result behind Daniel Ricciardo.
“What an unfortunate race,” revealed Sainz. “Even though I did one of my best ever starts, a piece of another car got stuck in our side pod, which made me lose downforce during my first stint and also meant I had to stop too early for my pit-stop onto the Softs.
“This then compromised my second stint and I then also got a 10-second penalty… Now it’s time to reset, get ready for my home race – it always gives me an extra boost! – and come back stronger than ever.”
