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Carlos Sainz, despite having been very strong during the weekend in wet conditions, suffered an accident due to aquaplaning at the exit of turn 11 and was forced to retire on the first lap of the Japanese Grand Prix.
Abandonment in the first round
The weather forecast indicated that during the race, as in Free Practice 1 and Free Practice 2, a lot of water would fall on the track. However, that weather forecast fell short and much more water fell than it did on the first day of Formula 1 in the Asian country.
Carlos Sainz suffered in these conditions, and from the start and despite having the favorable side of the track, he was overtaken by Sergio Pérez and lost third position.
But the worst moment for the Madrid driver did not come following the first meters of the race, it came at the exit of turn 11. There, Carlos Sainz suffered from aquaplaning as there was a lot of water on the track and the conditions for rain tires extreme and hit the wall, being forced to abandon the grand prix.
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The track conditions were so bad that, during the safety car period caused by the Ferrari driver himself, the FIA ended up displaying a red flag for the teams to return to the pit lane.
a missed opportunity
Suzuka was a favorable place for Carlos Sainz throughout the weekend, following being very strong in all kinds of conditions.
Both in Free Practice 1, 2, 3 and the first qualifying sessions, the #55 was ahead of his teammate and showing good pace, even in the wet. In qualifying, Sainz was 57 thousandths from pole position, only failing to do so due to a mistake made in the last corner.
In addition, the rider from Madrid insisted following qualifying that he wanted wet conditions for the race as he was comfortable in Free Practice and believed that it would be the only opportunity to beat Max.
However, the problem with the aquaplaning prevented him from completing a single full lap during the race and losing the great opportunity he had this weekend.
