McLaren Monza success was “terrible result” for Ferrari - Carlos Sainz

Carlos Sainz in Italy — Photo: © LAT Images

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McLaren Monza success was “terrible result” for Ferrari - Sainz

Rivals scored maximum points in Italy

Ian Parkes & Will Gray

Friday 24 September 2021 10:34

Carlos Sainz claims McLaren’s one-two finish at the last race in Monza was a “terrible result” for Ferrari and has left the team with a massive challenge to catch up in its quest to finish best of the rest behind Red Bull and Mercedes.

McLaren capitalised on the collision between title contenders Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton to collect the team’s first one-two since 2012, with Daniel Ricciardo leading home Lando Norris in Ferrari’s own back yard.

Assessing the triumph of the team he left at the end of last season to join Ferrari, Sainz said: “Huge congratulations to them, I think they deserve it.

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"It’s great to see a team like McLaren winning again after so many years. Obviously, I left a lot of friends in McLaren and to see them so happy on Sunday.

“For us, it was a terrible result because they got every point possible out of Monza, even fastest lap, they maximised their chances and they’ve made our life a bit more difficult.

“They have the upper hand now, they have a car that is very quick and it is going to be very difficult to beat them, that’s for sure.”

Sainz has high hopes for Ferrari form in Sochi

Despite the disappoinment in Italy, Sainz said that simulations for this weekend’s race in Sochi had looked promising and that a strong performance in the tricky final sector could give Ferrari an advantage.

The Spaniard, who finished sixth at Monza, said: “Before going to Monza we knew it was going to be a difficult track for us. We knew by our simulations that we were going to be three or four-tenths behind McLaren.

“We know the characteristics of our car and we know that Monza is one of the worst possible places to go for the characteristics of our car.

“Our simulations suggest Sochi should be a better track for us. Sector one is still going to be a tough one for us compared to McLaren but the last sector we should be strong over there so it should balance out a bit more.

“Hopefully we can put together another strong weekend and start cutting back the points deficit on them. It is not going to be easy but we are going to give it our best shot.”