Ferrari Formula 1 driver Carlos Sainz will be given a five-place grid penalty following the team’s decision to opt for a new power unit.
Ahead of the weekend’s first practice session, the FIA released its technical bulletin, which stated that Sainz would have a fresh internal combustion engine for this weekend.
The engine will be Sainz’s sixth new power unit for the season and the Spanish driver will serve his penalty for the Sprint Race, much like Lewis Hamilton did a year ago.
Sainz believes Mexico was an aberration
The Ferrari team seemed oddly slow at this season’s Mexican Grand Prix. Not only was the team comprehensively beaten by Red Bull but they fell behind Mercedes as well.
Sainz though is confident that the result was a one-off and that Ferrari would bounce back during the final two rounds of the championship.
“We’ve never been so far off the pace in the dry all year, so I think it’s quite clear that we didn’t get it right in Mexico,” Sainz stated.
“It doesn’t matter if it was the engine, the car balance, tyres, whatever – there was clearly something that wasn’t working. And now we focus on Brazil and Abu Dhabi, [the] important last two races before the end of the season where we want to get the pace back.
“We want to get back to fight on the podium with Red Bull and Mercedes. I think it’s a very interesting fight up front and keep having smooth weekends where I can learn from the car and prepare for next year.”
