Carlos Sainz admitted he had “mixed feelings” after earning second place in the Abu Dhabi GP while Ferrari just missed out on the constructors’ title.
Sainz and team mate Charles Leclerc made the podium, but victory for Lando Norris ensured that McLaren held on to its advantage in the points.
The Spaniard will now have his first taste of the Williams FW46 in a filming day in Abu Dhabi on Monday afternoon, before he completes a full test day with the team on Tuesday.
“Obviously a bit of mixed feelings, I’m not going to lie,” said Sainz. “I think we all came into this race trying to win the constructors’ championship, and ultimately we didn’t manage to do it.
“McLaren have put together a very strong weekend. Lando hasn’t put a foot wrong all race and all weekend. And in the end, congratulations to them, because they deserve it.
“On my side, I tried to do everything I could to keep within reach of McLaren. Before the race we knew that McLaren might have one or two tenths of pace on us and that was enough to pull a bit of a gap before the pit stops or during the race to have a bit of a buffer and not to feel too much pressure.“
Sainz admitted that he thought Oscar Piastri’s first lap incident might have opened the door for Ferrari.
“I think I had a very strong first stint,” he said. “I managed to keep [Norris] within reach and within pressure margins, especially when I was told Charles was coming in a good comeback.
“Oscar had obviously that incident in lap one, I thought we might have a bit of a chance, but then little-by-little it started to fade.
“When we put on the hard tyres, like we’ve seen in many cases this year, the McLaren upped the pace a bit, and they started pulling away two/three tenths per lap, and that was enough for them to have that safety margin, and bring it home.
“And from our side, I think we did everything we could. Both Charles and I have given absolutely everything this weekend. It hasn’t been an easy weekend for me, obviously, knowing it was the last one.
“But I did the best I could to stay focused and to do the maximum that the car could do today, I think.“
He agreed that the realisation that it was his final race for Ferrari had an impact.
“Strange,” he said. “A bit emotional, I’m not going to lie. Probably, I would say it was more emotional the last time that I jumped in the car, in the grid. I knew that was obviously going to be my last race with a group of people that I’ve enjoyed these last four years.
“The last time that I would jump in a Ferrari car, probably, and I was just feeling emotional. I tried to remind myself to try and enjoy the race as much as possible and to give the absolute maximum for this team.”
Sainz admitted that he was already thinking about his first laps for Williams.
“I’m not going to lie, my last laps, as much as I was pushing like hell for this team I was already starting to feel things in the car and trying to say, remember how this feels because tomorrow and Tuesday I need to remember why is this car quick in this corner and why does it feel good?
“Because I know probably what I’m going to find tomorrow and Tuesday needs some margin of improvement in the corners that I was feeling the car. So this just sums up that I’m already looking also ahead. I’m extremely motivated for the challenge that I have ahead of me.
“Today is a day to try and enjoy as much as possible with the team as my last day in red. We still have some days in Maranello coming up, but obviously my competitive mind is already looking forward to Monday and Tuesday and to see how I can make that Williams car faster.”
