Carlos Sainz completed his first lap at the wheel of a Ferrari Formula 1 car today at the Fiorano track in Maranello.
The 26-year-old from Madrid ran his usual F1 number 55 on the SF71H from 2018 and completed more than a hundred laps on his maiden outing with the Scuderia.
Carlos worked with the engineers and also got to know the mechanics and the car procedures, many of which will also be relevant to this year’s SF21, which he and Charles Leclerc will drive for the first time at the pre-season test in Bahrain in March.
Carlos is the fifth Spaniard to be part of the Scuderia. Before him, Fernando Alonso raced for five seasons for the Maranello squad, taking part in 96 Grands Prix, winning 11, and long before that, the Marquis Alfonso de Portago raced in five GPs for Ferrari, his best result being a second place in the 1956 British Grand Prix.
Speaking about his first outing with the team, Carlos Sainz said:
“A day I will never forget! This morning, the alarm went off at dawn because we had some very early meetings before going out on the track.
“One of the most special moments for me today was when I arrived at the circuit and I saw the Ferrari with my number 55 on it!
“I was eager to jump in the car and that first installation lap was exciting.
“Then we got down to work and I am very pleased with how the day unfolded. We were able to get through an extensive programme and I was able to familiarise myself with the whole setup: the engineers and mechanics, the steering wheel, the procedures which are obviously a bit different from those on the car I drove last season.
“It was very nice to have my father there at such an important moment in my career.
“And I’d like to thank Mattia, Laurent, and everyone at Ferrari for such a warm welcome and such a positive first day in the 2018 car.
“I am very happy and could not have wished for a better start.”
