Sainz critical of "no logic" FIA decision to bar Abu Dhabi test run
Carlos Sainz Jr says that the logic behind the FIA's decision not to allow him to run in next week's Abu Dhabi Formula 1 young driver test hasn't been explained
The test was originally defined in the 2020 sporting regulations as being solely for drivers who had started no more than two grands prix, with the FIA having the final say on who would be allowed to participate.
But after lobbying from Renault, the test was eventually opened up to any drivers who didn't participate in a race in 2020, opening the door for Renault's 2021 signing Fernando Alonso to test for the Enstone team.
Reserve drivers for Red Bull and Alfa Romeo, Sebastien Buemi and Robert Kubica, will also take part, while Sakhir GP Williams stand-in Jack Aitken is also eligible to drive as he will not have started more than two Grands Prix, regardless of whether he once again replaces George Russell in Abu Dhabi this weekend.
Although opposed to the original decision to allow non-rookies, Ferrari subsequently pushed hard for the test to be opened up to everyone, including incoming 2021 driver Sainz.
However confirmation came this week that drivers who raced the full season in 2020 would not be allowed.
Speaking ahead of his last grand prix for McLaren in Abu Dhabi, the Spaniard said that he didn't understand the decision.
"There hasn't been any logic explained to me," said Sainz, who will now get his first Ferrari experience with a two-year-old car early next year.
"Because first of all, I think there's very little logic behind it. And I think not many people really understand what's going on.
"Of course, I'm disappointed not being able to test, but I have to accept it, and turn the page.
"I will make sure I'm prepared as much as I can be for next next year.
"For me as it's only one and a half days testing for each driver next year, the logical thing would have been to open a bit the hand, to some or to all of the drivers who wanted to take part in the Abu Dhabi test.
"Especially knowing it's two cars per team [in Abu Dhabi], to open one of the cars to at least fit the driver into a car, knowing that next year is the same chassis, and see that everything is more or less working working well - the safety aspects from the jump out test, to the to the fitting of the car itself, are obviously primarily important.
"And those are the things that thanks to the Abu Dhabi test, we would have been able to sort out and get a bit of a head start on and unfortunately, it's not happening.
"Obviously I'm disappointed, but nothing I can change."
Perez: Red Bull's Marko sent me congratulations after Sakhir F1 win
Steiner: Haas F1 team taking Mazepin video incident "very seriously"
Sauber keen to "give the best to Alfa Romeo" amid Audi F1 links
Frederic Vasseur says that Sauber is focusing to “give the best to Alfa Romeo” through its Formula 1 partnership amid links to a possible takeover by Audi in the future.
Former F1 race director Masi to get Supercars Commission role
Former Formula 1 race director Michael Masi is set to become the new Chairman of the Supercars Commission in Australia.
Verstappen: No quick solution to extremely heavy F1 cars
Red Bull world champion Max Verstappen thinks there is no quick solution to tackle the burgeoning weight of Formula 1 cars, which has proven an unpopular aspect of the 2022 rules revolution.
Grading F1's 2022 drivers at half-term
Over the first 13 races of Formula 1's new ground effects era, Max Verstappen has surged into the lead in the world championship over Charles Leclerc. But as the 2022 season prepares to roar back into life, who stacks up as the top of the class, and who must do better? We graded every driver based on their performances so far
Grading F1's 2022 drivers at half-term
Over the first 13 races of Formula 1's new ground effects era, Max Verstappen has surged into the lead in the world championship over Charles Leclerc. But as the 2022 season prepares to roar back into life, who stacks up as the top of the class, and who must do better? We graded every driver based on their performances so far
The 10 stories to watch out for across the rest of the 2022 F1 season
It’s 13 down, nine to go as the Formula 1 teams pause for breath in the summer break. But what can we expect to happen over the next three months from Belgium to Abu Dhabi? Here's the key storylines to keep an eye out for the rest of the 2022 season
The inconvenient truth about F1’s ‘American driver’ dream
OPINION: The Formula 1 grid's wait for a new American driver looks set to continue into 2023 as the few remaining places up for grabs - most notably at McLaren - look set to go elsewhere. This is despite the Woking outfit giving tests to IndyCar aces recently, showing that the Stateside single-seater series still has some way to go to being seen as a viable feeder option for F1
How a bad car creates the ultimate engineering challenge
While creating a car that is woefully off the pace is a nightmare scenario for any team, it inadvertently generates the test any engineering department would relish: to turn it into a winner. As Mercedes takes on that challenge in Formula 1 this season, McLaren’s former head of vehicle engineering reveals how the team pulled of the feat in 2009 with Lewis Hamilton
The under-fire F1 driver fighting for his future
Personable, articulate and devoid of the usual racing driver airs and graces, Nicholas Latifi is the last Formula 1 driver you’d expect to receive death threats, but such was the toxic legacy of his part in last year’s explosive season finale. And now, as ALEX KALINAUCKAS explains, he faces a battle to keep his place on the F1 grid…
The strange tyre travails faced by F1’s past heroes
Modern grand prix drivers like to think the tyres they work with are unusually difficult and temperamental. But, says MAURICE HAMILTON, their predecessors faced many of the same challenges – and some even stranger…
The returning fan car revolution that could suit F1
Gordon Murray's Brabham BT46B 'fan car' was Formula 1 engineering at perhaps its most outlandish. Now fan technology has been successfully utilised on the McMurtry Speirling at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, could it be adopted by grand prix racing once again?
Hamilton's first experience of turning silver into gold
The seven-time Formula 1 world champion has been lumbered with a duff car before the 2022 Mercedes. Back in 2009, McLaren’s alchemists transformed the disastrous MP4-24 into a winning car with Lewis Hamilton at the wheel. And now it’s happening again at his current team, but can the rate of progress be matched this year?