Carlos Sainz says he can 'only admire' Charles Leclerc's 'impressive way of driving’

Will Sainz be able to evade the No. 2 driver role?
Will Sainz be able to evade the No. 2 driver role?

Carlos Sainz admires the way Charles Leclerc adapted to the 2022 Ferrari. The Spaniard believes the Monegasque is driving at a high level and has an impressive skill set.

Praising his Ferrari teammate while speaking to RacingNews365, the 27-year-old driver said:

“In between, Charles [Leclerc] does an excellent job with the car. He drives at a very high level, he sets super fast laps and he has an impressive way of driving. Such a thing I can only admire and in some ways copy to get faster. And that’s it, sometimes it goes this way and as a driver you have to go through that process and challenge yourself.”

Carlos Sainz was full of admiration for his teammate’s driving skills and ability to adapt to the new car. He revealed that he even tried to emulate the 24-year-old's driving style to help him extract the most from the car. Unfortunately, the Spanish driver has had a lot of bad luck so far this season.


Carlos Sainz believes the 2022 Ferrari F1 car does not suit him unlike its predecessor

After showing strong form last year and outscoring Leclec in the championship standings, many expected Carlos Sainz to further improve this year. However, he has had a poor start to the season; the Ferrari driver has not only had bad luck, but also seemed to crumble under pressure a few times this year. He admitted that the new car did not suit his driving style and that he is still learning to adapt to the machinery.

He explained:

“I’m not at the point where I was with last year’s car. That I drive in a natural way. For my ‘taste’ the car is a bit disappointing, but that’s the way it is. You can adapt or you can make the car a bit more to your liking. Either way, these two things take time. It takes knowledge and experience. It’s trial and error. And that’s the process I’m in right now and I’m trying to correct it as soon as possible.”

The former Red Bull driver is fifth in the Driver Standings while his teammate stands in second. Despite a fourth-place finish in his home race in Spain, Carlos Sainz is far from joining the fight up front. According to F1 pundits, the Spanish driver is slowly evolving into the role of the 'No. 2 driver.'

Catch Sainz this weekend in the Monaco GP.

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Edited by Anmol Gandhi
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