Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz is poised to make his comeback at the upcoming Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne after recovering from surgery for appendicitis. The Spanish driver had to sit out the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix earlier this month, where 18-year-old British talent Oliver Bearman filled in as a last-minute replacement.
Despite Bearman’s commendable debut performance, finishing seventh in Jeddah, he is expected to return to Formula 2 with Sainz’s return to full fitness. Ferrari confirmed that Sainz is anticipated to be back behind the wheel for the Australian race weekend.
Sainz, who secured a podium finish with third place at the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix, aims to continue Ferrari’s strong start to the 2024 Formula 1 season. The team demonstrated competitiveness with a one-two finish for Red Bull in Saudi Arabia, where Sainz’s teammate Charles Leclerc secured third place.
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur expressed confidence in the team’s performance potential at the Australian Grand Prix, expecting them to be frontrunners once again. With the Melbourne track potentially mirroring the pecking order seen in Jeddah, Ferrari plans to adopt an aggressive approach to apply pressure on their rivals.
The Australian Grand Prix weekend kicks off with the first practice session at 01:30 GMT on Friday, with the race scheduled to start at 04:00 on Sunday. As Sainz prepares to rejoin the action, Ferrari fans eagerly anticipate another exciting race weekend with the Spanish driver back in the cockpit.