Five famous sporting figures have sent congratulatory messages to Carlos Sainz after the 29-year-old won the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday.
The Spaniard finished ahead of Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris to secure glory on a day when Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton and George Russell were all unable to finish the race.
Sainz's victory came just two weeks after he'd undergone surgery on his appendix.
And the Ferrari star was delighted after winning the third F1 race of his career following previous victories in Britain and Singapore.
Carlos Sainz was delighted after winning the Australian Grand Prix on Sunday
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Tennis duo Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz have both congratulated Sainz on his triumph on social media.
Nadal shared an image of his compatriot on Instagram and accompanied his post with seven clapping emojis, as well as the Spanish flag.
Alcaraz wrote: "Grande Carlos! Enhorabuena! Vaya carrera!"
When translated, that means 'Great Carlos! Congratulations! What a race!'.
Spanish Moto GP star Marc Marquez also sent a message to Sainz.
"Top 1!!! Felicidades, Carlos," he said.
Former basketball star Pau Gasol stated: "Hace dos semanas, operado de apendicitis, y hoy ganando una careera de F1!!! Grande Carlos."
His message, when translated, means: "Two weeks ago, operated on for appendicitis, and today winning an F1 race!!! Great Carlos."
And Sevilla footballer Sergio Ramos praised Sainz by writing: "Enhorabuena [Congratulations] @Carlossainz55."
Sainz, meanwhile, showed his class after winning the race in Australia.
He admitted it was a 'pity' the 26-year-old couldn't complete the race.
“I felt like I could keep up with him on the first lap and try and take DRS,” he said, per Formula1.com.
"Then he lost car into Turn 3 and there was my chance to get close and attempt an overtake, and as soon as he was behind he started struggling with the brakes and that was it for him.
“It’s a pity because I think we would have had a very good fight for P1 today, but I’m happy to take the win – he’s had plenty of them!
"I’m happy to be back here.”
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Carlos Sainz has been hailed by Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal after winning the Australian Grand Prix
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And Sainz admitted he was still a bit 'stiff' from appendicitis surgery, despite his triumph.
“It was a really good race; I felt really good out there," he added.
“Of course, [I’m] a bit stiff, especially physically, it wasn’t the easiest, but I was lucky that I was more or less on my own.
“I could manage my pace, manage the tyres, manage everything.
"It wasn’t the toughest race of all, but yeah, very happy, very proud of the team.
Carlos Sainz was able to win the Australian Grand Prix after Max Verstappen was unable to finish the race
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"I’m happy to be in a one-two with Charles [Leclerc] here. It shows that hard work pays off.
“Life sometimes is crazy, what happened at the beginning of year, then the podium in Bahrain, then the appendix, the comeback, the win... it’s a rollercoaster but I loved it and I’m extremely happy.”
