Carlos Sainz rues missed winning opportunity at Canadian GP

Carlos Sainz says it is hard to be satisfied with second place when you’re as close to winning a Grand Prix as he was in Montreal.

The Spaniard’s eyes would have lit up when he saw the Safety Car called towards the end of the Canadian Grand Prix, with him able to pit for fresh tyres and rejoin in second place, before cruising up behind Max Verstappen on more worn tyres ready for the restart.

Indeed, he would have felt as though this was a golden opportunity to earn his first-ever race win in Formula 1 and, indeed, he pushed Verstappen as hard as he could in the closing stages to try and take P1.

Max, though, is a very cool customer under the biggest of pressures and he held onto the race win, keeping Sainz at bay around the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

The performance was a strong one from Sainz regardless, but he did not feel satisfied by it at all given he felt as though the win was their for the taking:

“The fact that victory does not come when you are the fastest perhaps hurts more,” the Spaniard told DAZN F1.

“I am not satisfied. It’s been too close to be satisfied. Especially with the pace I’ve had throughout the race, which has been very good.

“I have been very comfortable, all the time a little faster than Max.”

Sainz’s wait for a P1 in a race continues, then, but if he can show the pace he did in Montreal at the races to come, he’ll be in the mix for victory, that is for sure.