Sainz accepts disappointment: “I don’t hide it, it’s my fault”

Accidented on Sunday, Carlos Sainz managed to reach the finish of the 48H stage which stretched over two days, however the state of his Ford Raptor signaled the end of the race for the defending champion. The four-time winner of the race and his co-driver Lucas Cruz are already packing their bags to return to Spain, without having been able to really enter the competition.

Passed on the roof at km 327 of the second stage, the left side of the Raptor suffered damage to the roll bar, but the FIA ​​regulations prohibit a competitor from resuming the race if such an element has suffered damage structural. Speaking to the media gathered to collect his testimony Monday evening in Bisha, Sainz explained: “When we got here, they inspected the car a little more and they saw that one of the roll bars was very, very slightly damaged.”

“The team said it was very simple to repair, but the FIA ​​didn't want to take any risks. In that sense, maybe in this race, especially with the guarantee of someone like Ford, we should be a little more flexible”, suggested the Spaniard.

Asked if he agreed with the FIA's decision, he added: “I respect 100% the FIA ​​and its decisions. What I say is that we have to find a balance. If the team doesn't think they can repair it by providing guarantees, they are not going to send me to do a special, but in the end, they saw the car yesterday [dimanche]you could barely see that it was twisted and they let me run today [lundi]. If I ran today… I don't know, I don't want to criticize, but a debate can be opened.”

The abandonment is in any case recorded and Carlos Sainz does not hide that this setback is painful: “I'm very disappointed, it's one of the biggest disappointments of my career, but in the end, I have gray hair and I know that's how races are done. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't, it's a question of details.”

The detail, this time, is an accident for which the 62-year-old pilot assumes responsibility: “I'm not hiding it, it's my fault because in the end, I arrived at 20 km/h on a dune so deep that the speed was enough to turn me around. There's no need to make excuses. It's happened to me twice before and it happens to all of us. If I was in Madrid, sitting on a sofa, it clearly wouldn't happen to me.”

“It's my responsibility and I in no way want to make excuses. Maybe the tactics of the first day were not the right ones, I should have lost more time to go further, as we saw it, but in hindsight it's very easy to say”, added Carlos Sainz, author of a good first day and second to cross this dune on Sunday.

“What is true is that from my point of view, starting a Dakar with a 48-hour stage, a 'rest' day and a marathon stage has never been done before. I insist on the fact that we have never done this before and, from my point of view, it may be too much Last year, the 48 hour stage was the second week and l. 48 hour stage every two different weeks might make more sense.”

Carlos Sainz leaves with a deep regret, that of not having gained much experience behind the wheel of the Raptor: “I'm angry for Ford, for the team, for not being able to draw conclusions, try the car, gain more experience. I hope Mattias [Ekstrom] and Mitch [Guthrie] will be able to fight for victory. For my part, I'm going to go to Madrid and have my back checked a little.”