Ferrari fitted Spanish driver Carlos Sainz’s car with a third control electronics (CE) on Friday, triggering a 10-spot grid penalty for Sunday’s French Grand Prix as that exceeds his quota for the season.
But, further penalties may be on the horizon.
The Spaniard recorded the fastest time during second practice, but when speaking with formula1.com’s Will Buxton afterwards about the challenge he faces Sunday, Sainz said he won’t be “in that fight for pole position given the amount of penalties.”
Buxton followed up by reiterating that Sainz said “the amount of penalties,” pointing out that “so far, we only know about one.” He asked the Ferrari driver if there is an intention to change more components and start from the back of the grid.
Sainz paused before giving a knowing smile. “I mean I took 10, no? So you can expect what’s coming next.”
The last several weeks have been a roller coaster for Sainz as he recorded his first F1 pole and win at Silverstone before his car caught on fire in Austria the following weekend. He sits fourth in the driver standings, trailing Red Bull’s Sergio Perez by 18 points.
