19/05/2022
NEWS STORY
Carlos Sainz has expressed his fears over drivers long-term health as a result of the pounding they are experiencing with porpoising.
As a result of the phenomenon, a number of drivers, most notably George Russell, have admitted to feeling back pain due to the extreme bouncing of the cars.
Speaking ahead of his home Grand Prix, admitted that he fears the phenomenon could have a long-term impact on drivers' health.
Asked how he thinks the new breed of F1 car will handle next week's Monaco Grand Prix, Sainz replied: "More than Monaco, it's how much of a toll a driver should be paying for his back and his health in a Formula One career with this kind of car philosophy?
"I think we need to open the debate more than anything," he continued. "I think the regulations are great, they're doing exactly what we needed for racing. But do we need to run as stiff for our necks and back as we are having to run lately?
"I've done my usual checks on my back, neck tightness etcetera and I see this year I'm tighter everywhere," he added. "I'm already feeling it... I don't need expert advice to know that ten years like this it's going to be tough, and you're going to need to work a lot in mobility, flexibility."
"I would have thought you'd have much worse effects from crashing a car at 50 or 60 G like some of us have done," argued McLaren's Lando Norris.
"There's also many ways for them to stop porpoising," he added. "Like lifting your rear ride height 20mm."
Coming weeks after the death of Tony Brooks, the last surviving Grand Prix winner from the 1950s, it is interesting to hear Sainz, who has started 145 races since entering F1 in 2015, suggest his career might last for another ten years. It wasn't that long ago that drivers measured their futures on a race-by-race basis, a stiff back being the very least of their concerns.