Carlos Sainz is likely to start the French GP from the back of the grid – as Ferrari aims to re-build the engine from scratch

An unfortunate engine failure cost Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz a podium finish at the Austrian GP last weekend

Ferrari is in a spot of bother with repeated occurrences of engine failure. It has been a constant cause of concern for the team throughout the season so far and they have decided to replace every part of the engine which cost Carlos Sainz a podium finish in Austria.

Carlos Sainz will likely start at the back of the grid at the French Grand Prix.

Ferrari are going to be rebuilding the entire car, and will take new parts for almost every engine part as most of the engine was in an appalling condition. #Formula1 #Ferrari #F1 #FrenchGP pic.twitter.com/AXQhkYPayB

— Fastest Pitstop (@FastestPitStop) July 11, 2022

Ferrari suspects the engine failure which put Carlos Sainz Jr out of Sunday’s Austrian Grand Prix was a repeat of a problem that caused another retirement three races earlier in Azerbaijan. Team principal Mattia Binotto explained the internal combustion engine has been responsible for two of the three race-ending power unit failures the team has experienced this year.

“I think we’ve got only two engine failures so far. Obviously ‘power unit’ (failures), more than two, but in terms of the internal combustion engine, two”, said Binotto. Binotto added that the initial indication is Sainz’s failure shared the same cause as Leclerc’s previous one – “Obviously, we need to look at what happened today. Is it the same we had already as the one in Baku with Charles? Very likely.”

With just 10 days left for the French GP to get underway, the Ferrari staff are in a race against time to get the engine ready in time for Sainz to stand a chance to register another podium finish.

Where do things stand ahead of the French GP?

Red Bull dominates the drivers’ championship standings despite a disappointing outing for Sergio Perez in Austria. Max Verstappen leads the standings with 208 points. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc has overtaken Perez and now occupies second place with 170 points. Perez lies third with 151 – ahead of Carlos Sainz, George Russell, and Lewis Hamilton.

In the constructors’ championship, Red Bull lead the table with 359 points, Ferrari are significantly behind in second place with 303 points. Mercedes are further behind – they occupy third place, having earned 237 points.

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