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.”
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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Neil (@neilosjames)
22nd May 2022, 20:56
Somewhere, Nico Rosberg is smiling.
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
24th May 2022, 0:17
Why? Don’t remember a gust of wind episode with him.
David BR (@david-br)
22nd May 2022, 21:12
I expect when Max burns the toast, Christian Horner would send out e-mails blaming power surges if he had to.
HJ
22nd May 2022, 21:56
No, probably he has to make a new one.
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.
MacLeod (@macleod)
23rd May 2022, 9:08
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.
RomTrain (@romtrain)
23rd May 2022, 13:53
The others just didnt make a mistake there
Illusive (@illusive)
23rd May 2022, 18:23
Max and Carlos are the worst drivers on the grid thats why they spun. There, happy?
Biker56 (@biker56)
22nd May 2022, 21:31
I first read that as “Christian Horner was described as a ‘massive gust of wind'” :)
baasbas
23rd May 2022, 8:08
I laughed
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
24th May 2022, 0:19
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.
hamiledon
24th May 2022, 14:32
Horner just can’t control his fart.
AlexTR (@petrucci)
22nd May 2022, 22:17
Excusing yourself is far more embarrassing than making an honest mistake
JV
25th May 2022, 1:09
They’re explaining the mistake, that’s how you learn from it.
Scary Terry (@hatebreeder)
24th May 2022, 8:33
Maybe if the car was heavier, it wouldn’t fly away in a breeze.
hamiledon
24th May 2022, 14:29
Simply cracked under pressure while trying to catch Leclerc.
Qeki (@qeki)
25th May 2022, 5:10
I don’t remember this side of the big bad wolf story