Ferrari confident Sainz Monaco podium the first of many

Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto has already seen enough from Carlos Sainz to predict the Spaniard will achieve many more podium finishes during his career with the Scuderia.

Sainz followed Max Verstappen home in Sunday’s Monaco Grand Prix to claim his first top-three finish for Ferrari, just five races after he joined from McLaren.

The 26-year-old's successful transition contrasts to others who have struggled after changing teams this year.

Binotto said: “Very positive for Carlos, his first podium with Ferrari, he has been doing very well since the start of the season

“[He is] integrating with the team, getting confidence with the car, and he really deserves his first podium with us [with] second place. I am pretty sure it will not be the last one and he will get more in the future.”

Leclerc being Ferrari team player

Sainz claimed his first podium with third in Brazil for McLaren in 2019, improving on that with second place in last year’s Italian Grand Prix in which he narrowly missed out on victory to Pierre Gasly.

Sainz has impressed since lining up alongside the highly-rated Charles Leclerc, who has been with the team since 2019, and the pair’s relationship appears to be blossoming with every race.

Leclerc, who failed to start in Monaco due to a mechanical failure on his car, was standing underneath the podium to celebrate Sainz’s success.

Binotto added: “That was a really good gesture from him, showing he was there to celebrate Carlos and celebrate the team as well.

“That’s very positive because it shows the team spirit we have at the moment, which we all believe in our project and we are all convinced that in the future we become stronger and stronger.

“There are an overall lot of positives from the weekend. The car performed well [in] all the sessions and that is certainly positive considering where we were in the past. The car and team are developing in the right direction.”

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