Il Nuovo Postiglione - Sainz stands by criticism of TV coverage at Singapore GP

He said he had not wished to cause any offence by observing there had been too much focus on celebrities and girlfriends at the expense of the racing on October 5.

"My comments were a bit blown out of proportion," he said before this weekend's United States Grand Prix in Austin.

"The fact that I mentioned the girlfriends, or the WAGs (wives and girlfriends), or whatever you like to call them, brought a bit of spice to the comment and it went more viral worldwide.

"In Singapore the broadcaster didn't do a good job. I mean there are other races where they do an incredible job and show us things, incredible things and track action, but for Singapore it was not good," the 31-year-old added.

Sainz's comments were widely published after the Singapore race.

A spokesperson for Formula One reacted to Sainz's observations, defending the sport's television coverage and said they sought to balance important moments with reactions from grandstands, high profile guests and locations.

Sainz has been in good form for Williams in recent races and carved through the field on his way to finishing 10th from 18th on the grid at Singapore.

"They missed way too much track action, but that doesn't mean it's a criticism of them or the way they do their job," he said.

"It's a shame that on a track where it's so difficult to overtake, they missed so many on-track battles.

"I hope they didn't take it personally or take it too hard, because it was just a simple critique of Singapore, which was not good enough," he added.

D.Ricci--INP