Carlos Sainz is still ecstatic following his final lap pass on Nico Hulkenberg for P10 in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, securing sixth place in the drivers' standings as a result. Sainz's move down the inside of turn 11 was daring but he knew he could pull it off after an earlier pass on Sergio Perez.
The one point he secured lifted him above Pierre Gasly to a career-best P6 in the championship, something he was delighted with.
Sainz said it felt like he was winning a championship when he made the move on the Renault, telling RACER: “It was the most exciting final lap I think I’ve got, it was like a World Championship for me.
“I got close enough to Nico to throw a move into Turn 9, and decided to back out of it and try it in 11, but I didn’t get the run out of 10 that I wanted, so it meant I arrived too late and a bit far behind.
“I saw a gap on the inside, but it was really small, a bit like with (Sergio) Perez so I said ‘OK, if it worked with Perez, I need to try to make it work with Nico.’ I threw the move and made it stick.
“It’s crazy, at the end of the championship, we were fighting on the last lap, in the last overtaking opportunity of the track. I made it stick.”