At the start of the season, Ferrari entered with a bang and gave that hope to their fans to lift the title after 14 years. Carlos Sainz, who entered his sophomore year with the Italian team, was struggling compared to his teammate Charles Leclerc.
Soon, he drifted away from any favours by his team as the Monegasque became their de-facto candidate for the drivers’ championship. Soon into the season, they kept slipping away from Red Bull’s pace, and all the title hopes were dusted.
Before the last three races, the Maranello-based team officially gave away the title to their rivals. Moreover, by the end of the last race, they were saving themselves against Mercedes, who were threatening them for the runner-up spot in the championship.
Also read: 7-time world champion Lewis Hamilton is proud of beating Nico Rosberg’s team
Ferrari never directed in the Carlos Sainz way
Sainz reveals that he read somewhere that Ferrari started to develop according to his needs. But the Spaniard calls it a big lie. He claims that he never got a car as per his requirement and, on the contrary, had to adapt to the car.
“I just learned how to drive it. I changed my driving style and fine-tuned the setup a bit more to my liking,” said Sainz. in Abu Dhabi. “the car didn’t develop in my direction or anything like that, so I hope this doesn’t get pointed out there because it’s completely fake and it’s not the real story of the year.”
He also reveals that the car felt the same throughout the season, and they kept falling out of pace against Red Bull. He added that even Mercedes, who was far from their former self, were faster than them after a point.
Charles Leclerc deserved P2
Leclerc finished right behind Max Verstappen in the standings but with a gulf of points difference. Meanwhile, he marginally outscored Sergio Perez in tally. But it was a result with which Leclerc would neither be satisfied nor disappointed.
Speaking on his teammate getting the P2, Sainz claims Leclerc had a solid season and looks comfortable in these new-generation cars. The 25-year-old got three race wins in the season.
He even credited his teammate for pushing him to the limit. It propelled him to adapt to the cars, which were fundamentally away from his vital areas. By the middle of the season, Sainz bagged his first career win by taking away the trophy in Silverstone. Not a bad season for him individually.
Also read: Ferrari to pay $1.5 million to Mattia Binotto for not joining rival team for next six months
