Sainz needs to 'be wrong to be right' for Ferrari progress

Carlos Sainz has suggested he still needs to 'get things wrong to get things right' at Ferrari after an improved performance saw him outqualify Charles Leclerc in Portugal.

The Spanish driver will start the Portuguese Grand Prix three places ahead of his team-mate in fifth after consistently improving across the weekend in Portimão.

Sainz has made errors in the opening two races in Bahrain and Imola since making the switch from McLaren to Ferrari, and believes there will be more to come before becoming fully attuned to his new machinery.

When asked where he felt his progress stood, Sainz said: "It is difficult to tell. I am getting there little by little.

"I still feel like there is progress, I feel like I still need to get it wrong a couple of times to come back and find another direction and get it right, a bit like these first three races.

"I think I have been doing good things and bad things and I feel like it is a matter of building this experience and this muscle memory with the car that will make me keep improving."

Referring specifically to the progress made since Imola, Sainz explained how he has adapted to the SF21.

"I am satisfied in particular with the feeling with the car, I felt like I made progress," added the Spanish driver.

"I changed a couple of things with my driving style after Imola, a bit of a different approach in braking and corner entry and at the same time I have been trying a lot of different set-ups and I feel like we have made progress.

"Still, there is a long way to go but the races are going by and I am feeling more at home as the season progresses."

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