Aston Martin have protested the results of qualifying at the Chinese Grand Prix in a move which could have a major impact on Carlos Sainz. The Ferrari driver ended up in seventh place after recovering from a brush with the barriers, which brought out the red flags in Q2.
Sainz lost the rear end as he was about to complete his lap and made contact with the wall, losing his front wing in the process. He eventually managed to get going again and limped back to the pits before his Ferrari mechanics repaired the damage, allowing him to continue.
The Spaniard went on to qualify in seventh place but there is seemingly a chance that he could be stripped of the position. Aston Martin quickly launched an appeal against the result, with journalist Chris Medland suggesting that it was in relation to Sainz stopping on track but still being allowed to compete in the rest of the session.
The regulation that Aston Martin have referred to is Article 39.6 of the Sporting Regulations, which states: “Any driver whose car stops on the track during the qualifying session or the sprint shootout will not be permitted to take any further part in that session.”
It remains to be seen if anything will be done to change the qualifying result in light of Aston Martin’s appeal. A stewards’ hearing is set to take place in Shanghai to discuss whether Sainz should have been allowed to continue after stopping on the circuit following his spin.
Reflecting on the incident after the session, Sainz said: “It was not easy at all [to regain composure]. I had a big moment there. Obviously, right in the last moment, I was able to crash in the right angle. I turned the wheel a bit to make sure I didn’t crash straight with the rear tyre and a bit more sideways.
“This probably saved the day, and from there a high heart rate and adrenaline, but was able to do a good lap later in Q2 and recover well from that moment. It’s a long race tomorrow, let’s see if we can put together a better race then quali. Over one lap there were a few cars that were quicker.
“There was nothing we could have done to beat them. Now, it’s something that over 50 something laps that we can show a better race pace and get infront of them. That won’t be easy.”
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