Sainz lost lucky grey cap in Barcelona

May 20 (GMM) Carlos Sainz lost his lucky grey cap at the recent Spanish grand prix.

For the past two years, as the 20-year-old conquered the Formula Renault 3.5 series, impressed Red Bull with his F1 tests, and earned his move to Toro Rosso in 2015, Sainz always wore the same Red Bull-branded grey cap -- now slightly tatty and with a couple of broken adjustment tabs on the rear.

"Do what you can to find my cap," El Confidencial newspaper quotes Sainz as having told his manager Borja Ortiz-Echague after the Barcelona round.

Apparently, in a moment of innocent jest, Sainz's countryman and hero Fernando Alonso threw the cap into the crowd on Barcelona race-day.

Sainz believed it was lost forever, until a fan 'tweeted' to the Toro Rosso driver: "I have your lucky cap. What will you give me for it?"

Manager Ortiz-Echague reportedly negotiated for 24 hours, as the fan wanted an all-access paddock pass -- but Sainz only has one for his manager and another for a family member.

"Finally, agreement was reached," Spain's El Confidencial reports. "The fan will receive a signed cap", tickets to a forthcoming race and another piece of personalised memorabilia.