"I just enjoy fighting with them" - Carlos Sainz on the younger generation of F1 drivers

Carlos Sainz had a phenomenal first year with Ferrari in the 2021 F1 season and particularly enjoyed racing teammate Charles Leclerc and former McLaren teammate Lando Norris in the battle for P3 in the constructors' championship.

Impressed by the clean, fair battles that took place, the Spaniard hopes these young drivers will drive with the same level of on-track respect when they are fighting for race wins in the coming years.

In a recent interview, Sainz told Motorsport:

"I just enjoy battling guys like Charles, Lando, and George when he will get the Mercedes next year. It’s a generation of drivers that, even if I am not exactly the age that they are, I just enjoy fighting with them. I think they are on a very good level, but in a way they also manage to keep it clean on-track, and put together good battles."

"If we are all fighting for higher stakes" - Carlos Sainz looks at 2022 season

The fight for P3 this year involved intense midfield battles. As described by Sainz, the wheel-to-wheel action always remained clean. The Spaniard hopes the same continues in the 2022 season, where he expects teams like Ferrari and McLaren to put up a good fight with Red Bull and Mercedes.

Sainz stated:

"This year, if you look at the midfield and the way we’ve managed to behave ourselves and race, it’s been a really positive. Let’s see next year if we are all fighting for higher stakes if we can keep it that way, because personally I enjoy it a lot."

While the first half of the 2021 season went the way of McLaren, who also secured 1-2 in Monza, Ferrari picked up immensely in the second half and went on to comfortably win back third place in the constructors' standings. With the likes of Norris, Leclerc and Russell expected to be fighting for the title next season, these battles are set to get more interesting.