Max Verstappen, Red Bull, Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, 2022

Verstappen and Sainz blame gusts of wind for turn four errors

2022 Spanish Grand Prix

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Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz Jnr said strong gusts of wind caused their costly off-track moments at turn four during the Spanish Grand Prix.

Sainz was the first of the pair to slide into the gravel on lap seven of the race. He was able to keep his Ferrari going but fell to 11th place.

Verstappen was next to go off in with an almost identical error at the same point on the circuit. Verstappen told his team on the radio a gust of wind was to blame.

“The first 30 laps were very frustrating for me after I went off in turn four first of all,” said Verstappen after the race. “It really caught me by surprise because I didn’t feel like I was actually braking later or throwing more speed into the corner.

“But it was very gusty out there today. One lap it felt all stable and then the next lap suddenly you could have more oversteer in places. So probably that caught me out, by surprise.”

(L to R): Max Verstappen, Red Bull; George Russell, Mercedes; Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, 2022
Gallery: 2022 Spanish Grand Prix in pictures
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner described it as a “massive gust of wind” which “literally just drifted him wide into the gravel.”

Sainz said he had the same problems as Verstappen, and that conditions affecting the aerodynamics of his car were responsible for his spin.

“The car has been quite on the knife edge there in the corner for me, all weekend,” the Ferrari driver explained. “The combination of the dirty air of the car in front of us, a very big gust of wind, made me lose control of the rear and go into a spin.”

Red Bull first practice driver Jüri Vips had a similar spin into the gravel at turn four during the Formula 2 sprint race, which he blamed himself for on the radio saying that he was always “too aggressive.”

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2022 Spanish Grand Prix

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Hazel Southwell
Hazel is a motorsport and automotive journalist with a particular interest in hybrid systems, electrification, batteries and new fuel technologies....

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17 comments on “Verstappen and Sainz blame gusts of wind for turn four errors”

  1. Neil (@neilosjames)
    22nd May 2022, 20:56

    Somewhere, Nico Rosberg is smiling.

    1. Why? Don’t remember a gust of wind episode with him.

  2. I expect when Max burns the toast, Christian Horner would send out e-mails blaming power surges if he had to.

    1. No, probably he has to make a new one.

  3. Ben Rowe (@thegianthogweed)
    22nd May 2022, 21:19

    I don’t believe that no other driver will have had a very similar gust of wind at that corner over one of the 66 laps (or slightly less if lapped) It also has to be partially driver related as well.

    1. There were several drivers complaing about the wind in turn 4 but didn’t had a gust at that moment but they all felt lightness of the rear or just oversteer in turn 4. It was not only Sainz and Max.

      1. The others just didnt make a mistake there

        1. Max and Carlos are the worst drivers on the grid thats why they spun. There, happy?

  4. I first read that as “Christian Horner was described as a ‘massive gust of wind'” :)

    1. I laughed

    2. Ahah, if I remember the team radio right, after verstappen went out horner said something about a gust of wind during the race, explaining his mistake.

    3. Horner just can’t control his fart.

  5. Excusing yourself is far more embarrassing than making an honest mistake

    1. They’re explaining the mistake, that’s how you learn from it.

  6. Maybe if the car was heavier, it wouldn’t fly away in a breeze.

  7. Simply cracked under pressure while trying to catch Leclerc.

  8. I don’t remember this side of the big bad wolf story

Comments are closed.