Sainz expects further midfield order swings after "nasty" Mugello surprise

Carlos Sainz claims his McLaren team has been handed a "nasty surprise" at the Tuscan Grand Prix but the Spaniard doesn't expect this to be the last time the midfield pendulum swings in 2020.

The Woking-based team had the second-fastest car in Monza, with Sainz's podium reflecting the pace a week ago but at Mugello, they have struggled to dial in the MCL35.

Sainz was happy with the improvement to the car between final practice and qualifying but reiterated the team expected more from the final race of the third triple-header.

"The midfield is what it is," he said.

"I think this is not going to be the last time where we see this kind of performance swing from track to track.

"On paper, we thought this track would be good for us. The midfield in Formula 1 always has surprises, this has been a nasty surprise but we kept our heads down and we managed to improve the car quite a lot going into qualifying so we also need to be happy and proud as a team that we didn't lose our heads too much."

The Spaniard, who will race for Mugello circuit owners Ferrari next season, remains optimistic of a good result in Sunday's race, pointing to the bedlam of the Italian Grand Prix as a prime example of why he won't give up hope.

"We came from a very strong weekend in Monza and the midfield always has surprises," Sainz added.

"Here, we have been struggling quite a bit with car balance and general grip in the car. I wouldn't expect massive changes going into tomorrow in terms of pace and car behaviour but racing is racing and anything can happen as we saw in Monza."

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