"I can fight freely" - Charles Leclerc still not Ferrari's number 1 choice, hints Carlos Sainz

Despite Charles Leclerc's dominant performances so far this season, barring a few instances of bad luck and poor strategy implemented by Ferrari, Carlos Sainz admitted that no team orders have been set so far. He revealed that the two drivers are free to fight each other on track and that no such orders have been communicated to him by the team.

As reported by MARCA, when asked about team orders, the Spaniard said:

“None of that has come to me. I arrive every weekend knowing that I can fight freely with Charles (as Binotto said on Saturday in Austria two weeks ago), although you always respect your partner more. I come here with the same mentality. When that moment comes, (the one with the order) will be communicated...I hope.”

Even Leclerc spoke to Sky Sports about Ferrari's team orders ahead of the French Grand Prix, admitting that it is up to team boss Mattia Binotto to decide. He said:

“I mean, I don’t want to think about this. I mean, my job is to drive the car and I will try to drive the car the fastest way possible, and then these choices are not made by me. It’s more Mattia who will take care of these choices.”

37 points currently separate Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz in the Driver Standings.

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F1 journalist feels like Ferrari needs to prioritise Charles Leclerc over Carlos Sainz

F1 journalist Daniel Moxon says it is time for Ferrari to make a final decision regarding team orders if it wants a real shot at the drivers' championship title and that Charles Leclerc should be given priority over his teammate Carlos Sainz.

In his Mirror UK column, Moxon said:

“The Spaniard is fast enough to be a world champion but has suffered some dreadful luck this year – no racer has more DNFs in 2022, and it could be argued that none of them were his fault. But F1 can be a cruel sport, and there can simply be no room for sentiment when it comes to the decision over a lead driver.”

He further wrote:

“At some point, they will have to decide who to prioritise, and Leclerc has generally proven himself to be faster this year when neither car has suffered from reliability issues.”

Charles Lelcerc has secured three wins so far in 2022, while Carlos Sainz took his maiden win at the British Grand Prix and currently stands fourth in the championship standings.