Formula 1: Does Ferrari regret Sainz’s exit?

Lewis Hamilton’s transfer from Mercedes to Ferrari next season has been decided for a long time. But while the Brit has had a poor season with the Silver Arrows so far, Carlos Sainz is driving like he’s been unleashed and is the only one who can challenge Red Bull led by world champion Max Verstappen.

The 29-year-old not only took the Reds’ only win of the season in Australia, but whenever he was able to drive, the “Smooth Operator” was quicker to finish than team-mate Charles Leclerc. The result is 3-0 in race results, 2-1 in qualifying matches. And if Sainz had not been out in Saudi Arabia due to additional surgery, he would probably be ahead of his teammate in the World Cup standings.

By comparison: world record champion Hamilton is in ninth place with ten points.

“Apart from long-time winner Max Verstappen, he is currently the man in Formula 1 form,” writes the special website. Motorsport-General about Sainz, who himself has a simple explanation for his ascent: “We just improved the car.”

Former Ferrari engineer Toni Cuquerella thinks the Reds are already regretting Sainz’s decision. “Whoever made the decision will have a bad end to the year,” he said Dazn.

And more: “I think if you take away the points because Carlos couldn’t drive the race, then Ferrari is thinking about whether they did the right thing or not.”

Sainz can accept discussions about his farewell calmly. The Spaniard will be “unemployed in the future,” as he joked recently. But it certainly won’t come to that, he is showing himself very strongly this year. Three races, three times on the podium. These are strong cover letters.

The Ferrari driver is “of course talking to a few teams” and looking at “the best option for me and my future,” he said in Suzuka and hopes to find a new contract with someone else “very soon.” team can sign.

There are rumors, among other things, about a return to Red Bull if Sergio Perez has to leave. As a reminder: Sainz successfully entered the first class with sister team Toro Rosso in 2015.

By Sports Information Service (SID)