Italy: Ferrari F1 driver Carlos Sainz Jr chases thieves who stole his Rs 5 crore watch after podium finish

Scuderia Ferrari’s Formula One driver Carlos Sainz Jr on Sunday chased down robbers in Milan after they stole his Richard Mille wrist watch worth $629,717 (Rs 5.23 crore), ESPN reported. The robbery attempt was made shortly after Sainz secured a third place finish in the Italian Grand Prix.

The driver, who was still in his team kit, was targeted when he was leaving the Monza circuit with his trainer. The duo pursued the robbers with the people nearby who saw the robbery happening and were able to catch them.

Videos from the scene show the police arresting one man while Sainz is a little far away catching his breath while standing with his hands on his knees.

Sainz acknowledged the incident on his X (formerly Twitter) as he thanked the Milan police and people for helping him.

“As many of you already know, we had an unfortunate accident yesterday in Milan. Most importantly, we are all fine and this will only be remembered as an unpleasant little story. Thanks to all the people who helped us yesterday, to the Milan Police for their very fast intervention and thanks for all your messages,” Sainz said in his post on X.

Italian Grand Prix is the home circuit of Ferrari and fans turn-up at the circuit in huge numbers to support their home team.

But this is not the first time that someone has tried to steal the watch from an F1 driver. Last year, four men tried to steal the watch of Sainz’s Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc in the Italian city Viareggio and were later arrested.

Before that, the current McLaren driver Lando Norris had his Richard Mille watch stolen which was worth Rs 1.3 crore. Norris was targeted after he watched the Euro 2020 Final at Wembley in London.