Sainz Asserts He Doesn't 'Need New Season To Prove' What He's Capable Of
F1Sunday, 18 February 2024 at 12:15
Carlos Sainz stated he doesn't need another year with Ferrari to prove to anyone what he's capable of after the last three seasons.
Scuderia Ferrari F1 driver Carlos Sainz has been with his team for three seasons until now. The 2024 will be his last season with the Italian team, as Lewis Hamilton will be replacing him starting from 2025.
Consequently, the Spanish driver needs to look for a new team. While some would say the upcoming season will be the most important in his career, the 29-year-old suggests otherwise. As reported by Planet F1, he said:
"Honestly speaking, I don’t think I need a new season to prove that or to show to anyone what I’m capable of."
During his three years with Ferrari, Sainz achieved multiple podiums and two victories during the 2022 British Grand Prix and the 2023 Singapore Grand Prix.
"I think I’ve been in F1 for nine years, and over the last nine years – and especially the last three being with a team like Ferrari – everyone has seen more or less what I’m capable of."
On the other hand, Ferrari chose Charles Leclerc over the Spaniard for a contract extension beyond the season 2024, and beating his 26-year-old teammate would be a great response from Sainz.
"Obviously [it’s] a new year, new opportunity, hopefully, a better car that allows us to – especially in the races – shine a bit more than what we did last year because definitely last year in the races we were struggling a bit more than in qualifying."
The 29-year-old wishes for a faster, more competitive car going into his last season with Ferrari, as he said his achievements in 2023 were primarily achieved through defensive driving.
"And with a better race car, we can do some better races, some better strategies, some better tire management, some better overtakes – because last year I was having to defend my position a lot and I did a lot of good defending but not enough good overtaking."
Sainz already tried Ferrari's 2024 challenger SF-24 on track at Fiorano (Ferrari's private racing circuit). Still, the most important part will be the direct performance comparison to teams like Red Bull or Mercedes. He added:
"Obviously looking forward to that and to see what we can extract from the car this year."
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