Ferrari F1 stars Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz CLASH in another frantic battle

Charles Leclerc, Carlos Sainz, Ferrari, 2023 — Photo: © LAT Images

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Ferrari F1 stars Leclerc and Sainz CLASH in another frantic battle

The pair have had some great squabbles in 2023

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Saturday 9 September 2023 11:57

Carlos Sainz has proved that he is faster than team-mate Charles Leclerc, by beating him in a race to put on their Ferrari driving gear.

The pair have been closely matched this season, with Leclerc getting on the podium three times to Sainz's one, but Sainz leads his team-mate in the drivers' world championship standings by six points.

At the Italian Grand Prix last time out, the Ferraris were engaged in an enthralling battle for third in front of their home fans, with Sainz coming out on top and being able to stand up on the iconic podium at Monza in front of the Tifosi.

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Sainz even managed to grab pole position away from Red Bull's Max Verstappen on the Saturday at Monza, and kept the Dutchman behind him for the first 14 laps of Sunday's race, the most amount of laps a non-Red Bull driver has been able to lead in the whole of 2023, before Verstappen cruised home to take his Formula 1 record tenth consecutive victory.

Overall this season, Sainz has been the consistent driver for Ferrari, whilst Leclerc has been the one able to produce some special results throughout the season.

Until now!

Testing their skills off the track, @Charles_Leclerc and @CarlosSainz55 take part in the suit up race 🤩

Who will be the fastest? 👀 Run to the #SFApp and find out 🏃‍♂️
— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) September 8, 2023

Sainz comfortably beat Leclerc in the 'racesuit challenge', and prove once and for all that he is the faster of the two drivers.

Ferrari's 2023 struggles

Ferrari haven't been able to win a single race in 2023, much to team boss Frederic Vasseur's dismay

Ferrari have clearly regressed from where they were in 2022, when they were challenging Red Bull for race victories.

Now, they find themselves squabbling with three or four other teams for a place in the top five at most races.

Their improved showing at Monza has boosted them into third in the constructors' world championship, but Sainz and Leclerc are only in fifth and sixth respectively.

Sainz has managed to put his car in the top six at nine of the 14 races so far, showing his consistency, whilst Leclerc has only managed it six times.

The six point gap in the championship comes from this statistic, as Leclerc hasn't been able to make his three podium finishes to Sainz's one count.