“He dedicated a letter to me”- Carlos Sainz reveals a heartfelt thankyou note written by Sebastian Vettel for the Spaniard in 2014.
Carlos Sainz has replaced Sebastian Vettel from Ferrari for at least 2021, and he aspires to make an impact in the team ahead of his debut for them.
Now, before the first race of the season, Sainz has given an insight into his relationship with Vettel and how he made the effort of writing him a thankyou letter back in 2014.
“I have a lot of respect for Sebastian,” Sainz said to SoyMotor.”I think he is one of the drivers who will mark an era in Formula 1, regardless of maybe the most difficult years he has had.
“I’m going to tell a story…the day he said goodbye to Red Bull in 2014, I was a simulator driver, and he dedicated a letter to me. He thought that the work I was doing in the simulator for him and the team was important, and he had the kindness to say goodbye to Red Bull by sending a letter to all the employees personalised for each employee.”
“He knew that at four o’clock in the morning, I spent hours in the set-up recommending settings for his race in Australia, and he was kind enough to send me a letter thanking me for that effort in the simulator and those hours of work I had put in.
“And since then, I have a special affection for him, and I have a relationship with him beyond the cameras, which maybe I have never told him, and someday I will tell him, but since then I have a great respect for him.”
Impressed by Tifosi
While Sainz is yet to fare out with Ferrari’s new SF21, he has appreciated the Ferrari fans, who first showed their love during their tests session in Italy.
“Yes, I was very impressed by the Tifosi at Fiorano. The people climbing the fences to see my installation lap at Fiorano made an impact on me.”
“I said, ‘the number of times the Tifosi must have climbed that fence, the number of times they must have come here to see Schumacher test the car, and now they’re climbing up there to see me.
“And that feeling of saying ‘this only happens at Ferrari’ because there is no other team that has a circuit in a village and that people go there to see the car run.
“A circuit in their town and a circuit in their factory. And the factory and the track are in the centre of the town. That’s unique.”
