Sainz had engine problems: 'So a bit surprised to see me P6'

Carlos Sainz surprised himself on Saturday with a sixth place in qualifying for the Mexican Grand Prix. This came after the Spaniard's Ferrari briefly ran out of power after the red flag. Sainz doesn't expects similar engine problems to return during the race.

Lance Stroll caused a red flag in Q1 thanks to a big crash in the final corner. After the red flag, many drivers were quick to move to the end of the pit lane to secure a place at the front of the grid for the restart of the session. Sainz was one of them and stood still at the end of the pit lane for about a minute and a half.

Immediately upon exiting the pits, the Spaniard reported to his team that he was having problems with the power of his engine. It was only at the first corner that he got the power back. "Yes, it was a tricky one", Sainz is quoted by Motorsport.com. "We’d been struggling a bit with getting out of the garage this weekend, and when we are too long stationary, we’ve been having a bit of this issue."

Sainz believes the entire qualifying session was stressful and says he only drove a decent lap in Q3. "So a bit surprised to see me P6," he said. Incidentally, Sainz doesn't expect to have any engine problems during the race itself. "It’s something we’re trying to sort out. It shouldn’t be a problem in the race."