“I am expecting him to be a great team-mate for Charles” – Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto is hoping for great things from Charles Leclerc and his new, more experienced teammate Carlos Sainz.
Ferrari had a massively disappointing stint last season – even by their disastrous standards last decade – where they saw all the titles go to arch-rivals, Red Bull and Mercedes. Since then, Sebastian Vettel has left for Aston Martin, and Carlos Sainz has joined McLaren, to partner Charles Leclerc.
Mattia Binotto, the under-pressure team principal of the iconic team, is desperately hoping Carlos Sainz can deliver the goods. Sainz has been impressive since stepping into F1, racing for the likes of the Red Bull family and McLaren. He finished last season strongly with the latter, finishing P6 overall, as he and Lando Norris helped McLaren take P3 after a considerable gap.
“What we are expecting from Carlos is a fast driver, he is very strong.”
“If you look at the 2020 season, it was really a very good season. I think he was even faster in qualifying. If you look at the past years, he was not so fast in the quali but I think in 2020 he was very strong in quali as well. He is a very strong racer. I think he is one of those drivers who is finishing races very often and normally, in the race, he is improving his position compared to the quali.
Carlos Sainz expected to improve Ferrari this season
“So I am expecting Carlos to contribute to the constructors’ championship, which is very important for us. I think it is important to have two drivers who are delivering, or doing very well in the race, in order to do as many points as we can for the constructors’ title.
With the new decade bringing in radical changes to the sport, the hope is that Ferrari can return to where they belong – to the top. 2021 is not going to be the year, though, with the title likely to be yet again won by Mercedes. And with Racing Point morphing into Aston Martin, and McLaren, Alpine (Renault), and AlphaTauri improving as well, a P3 finish would be a major achievement for Ferrari.
