WATCH | Carlos Sainz said he paid the price after Russell knocked him out of US GP

Carlos Sainz wasn't too pleased to have exited the United States Grand Prix at the end of the opening lap. The Spaniard put his Ferrari on pole position for the race, only for Mercedes-AMG's George Russell to mistime his braking and make contact with Sainz.

The touch spun Sainz around, causing a tyre puncture and damage to the power unit. Expectedly, Sainz did not see any highlights to his race and lamented the opportunity to study and understand the team's 2022 car better.

Frustratingly, Sainz's 2022 has not been going smoothly, retiring from the Grands Prix in Australia, Italy (Emilia Romagna), Azerbaijan, Austria, and Japan.

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There was drama from the word go in Austin ??#USGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/Re0mo0yb9n

"I think driver mistakes are driver mistakes, and the problem is that I paid [the] price again. It follows a bit the trend of the whole year with Lap 1, that it doesn't allow me to do the race and doesn't allow me to fight for the win, or doesn't allow me to keep learning from the car, which is extremely frustrating and disappointing," he told media after the race.

Russell received a five-second time penalty for causing the collision with Sainz and served it during his first pit stop. After the race, the Mercedes driver was seen exiting the Ferrari garage, having apologised to Sainz.

"It was a difficult afternoon for me - very unfortunate how things unfolded at the start, as I don't want to be in a position where I contribute to another driver having to retire," said Russell.

Sainz is currently fifth in the championship standings with 202 points, splitting the two Mercedes drivers: Russell (218 points) and Lewis Hamilton (198