Sainz reveals startling private FIA confession after Singapore qualifying chaos
Photo: Race Pictures
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Tobia is a Formula 1 journalist at GPblog with experience at international circuits. Since 2022, he has covered Grands Prix across Europe, delivering reliable coverage and insights from the paddock.
Carlos Sainz has revealed that FIA Single-Seater Director Nikolas Tombazis personally apologised to him following the controversy surrounding Sprint Qualifying at the Singapore Grand Prix. According to the Williams driver, the Greek acknowledged that human error affected the session and admitted that the decision to proceed with SQ2 despite the sporting unfairness was wrong.
Friday's Sprint Qualifying session at Marina Bay was overshadowed by a Race Control error that left several drivers at a disadvantage during SQ1. The problems began after Sergio Perez crashed at Turn 5, bringing out the red flag while marshals cleared debris from the circuit. However, when the session resumed, Overtake Mode was not available to the drivers.
Once Race Control realised the mistake, the system was briefly activated for 27 seconds before being switched off again. As a result, some drivers were able to complete their laps with additional power, while others were unable to benefit from the same performance advantage.
The FIA subsequently acknowledged that human error affected the competitive balance of the session, with several drivers, including Sainz, eliminated from SQ1, prompting an initial angry reaction from the Spaniard on Friday.
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Speaking to GPBlog after qualifying, Sainz revealed that Tombazis personally approached him to apologise, admitting that the decision taken between SQ1 and SQ2 was incorrect.
"Nikolas came to apologise, acknowledging there was a human error, but also acknowledging that the decision being taken between Q1 and Q2 was the wrong one because, admitting there was sporting unfairness, that should have never happened. Still very amazed by the fact that, still being aware of the sporting unfairness, they decided to throw it under the bed like nothing happened."
Photo: Race Pictures
Sainz questions FIA's inconsistent approach
The Spaniard was particularly frustrated by the decision to allow qualifying to continue despite the FIA recognising that some drivers were disadvantaged through no fault of their own.
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He also drew comparisons with the previous race weekend in Malaysia, where a separate software problem disrupted proceedings, questioning why the governing body handled the two situations differently.
"I am surprised especially with how different it went compared to Malaysia, where something very similar happened. Still don't understand it. I will never understand how that decision was taken, but look, we are not fighting for a championship. We're not fighting for points even. So I guess that's why also they didn't care that much."
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