The most successful strategies from the teams, combined with the seven total retirements recorded during the Chinese Grand Prix (with both McLarens not even lining up on the starting grid due to technical problems) offered a good opportunity for the struggling teams to finish the race in the top ten, thus obtaining precious points. A goal that Williams partially managed to achieve, out of the points in Australia but back in the top-10 in Shanghai thanks to Carlos Sainz’s 9th place.
Read more Alpine party in China: the team returns to the points with both its drivers
The former Ferrari driver, in addition to having managed the tires in the best possible way, also resisted the final attacks of Franco Colapinto, who was recovering after the contact with Esteban Ocon: “It’s a great feeling to have scored points here in China thanks to an excellent start, effective tire management, and good defense at the end of the race against Colapinto – commented #55 – we know we are not able to score points just through pace at this stage of the season, but today we did everything right and that made the difference. We must be proud of having made the most of every aspect and I hope these points are motivation for the whole team, here at the track and in Grove. Everyone is giving their best and we must continue to push hard in the coming weeks to further improve the car’s performance. Vamos!”
Read more Lawson surprised by his 7th place: “To be honest, we didn’t expect it”
A Sunday that was anything but satisfying for Alex Albon, among the four drivers who did not take part in the race due to a technical problem with their cars: “There isn’t much to learn from today, as on the laps to the grid we identified a hydraulic problem that prevented me from starting. We hoped to be able to get back on track to do a few laps and run the car in again before Japan, but unfortunately, we weren’t able to solve the problem in time. We need to thoroughly analyze the problems and the feedback received and understand our reliability issues to improve performance. As a team, it’s important to distinguish what is under our control from what is not, and we must pull together for Japan in just two weeks. The positive side is that Carlos managed to score some points for the team today, and congratulations to Kimi for his first victory”.
Read more Cigarini: “Ferrari, a less rigid approach and a change of mentality. There is confidence”
