Sainz race weekend in doubt after FP3 crash
Formula One doctors will decide if Carlos Sainz can continue racing at the Russian Grand Prix after his FP3 accident, say Toro Rosso.
Carlos Sainz's participation at the Russian Grand Prix is in doubt after crashing his Toro Rosso during FP3 on Saturday.
The Spaniard lost control of his car approaching turn 13 in Sochi and left the track before colliding with the barriers.
The 60-minute session was brought to an early end under red flags while Sainz was removed from his car, taken first to the medical centre and then airlifted to hospital.
The son of former World Rally Championship winner Carlos Sainz, the 21-year-old made a thumbs-up gesture from a stretcher in the wake of the incident, but whether or not he will be passed fit to race remains unclear, with team boss Franz Tost saying it will be left to the doctors to decide.
"Carlos is conscious and he is with the doctors now and they will look at him," he told Sky Sports F1 at the track.
"Whether he will be able to continue the race weekend or not we don't know yet. When he comes back we will check and then we will see.
"The car was lost under braking, but we need to find out the reason. We need the car for this, but at the minute it looks like nothing was broken [in the car]."
Meanwhile, drivers' championship leader Lewis Hamilton led the messages of support to Sainz on Twitter, posting: "Relieved to see a thumbs up from Carlos, my thoughts are with you man."
Lotus' Romain Grosjean added: "Good to see a thumbs up from @carlosainz… Hope to hear some good news very soon."
Mercedes Nico Rosberg was fastest in the practice session with a time of one minute 38.561 seconds.