Ever since the F1 summer break got over, Carlos Sainz has thrust himself into the spotlight not just at Ferrari but overall in Formula 1. His father Carlos Sr. is certainly proud of how his son has performed lately to gain a lot of plaudits. The rally champion has also been in the news lately for taking shots at Ferrari‘s confusing dynamics. Although, despite all that verbal drama, Sainz Sr. was praised by an ex-Ferrari boss, who deemed him a boon for Carlos Jr.

Carlos Sainz Sr. had cited how he was perplexed at the Scuderia’s driver management, with the Italian GP as a case in point. He stated, “It’s always my son who asks if he can attack. And Carlos is always the one who has to understand why he can’t overtake if he’s behind. But when Leclerc is behind, the positions are not fixed. But it does not matter.” Regardless of this Ferrari drama, the 61-year-old was delighted to see his son winning the Singapore GP.

Sainz Sr. – The psychological backbone for Carlos Sainz

There was footage of Carlos Sainz Sr. getting shared on social media, reacting to his son’s triumph under lights at Marina Bay. It was a magical weekend indeed for the Sainz family. With the pole & win in the bag, the 29-year-old doubled his win tally in F1 with some smart tactics. Former Ferrari general manager Peter Windsor also praised the culture of the Sainz family by putting Sainz Sr. as the main example.

In his live chat for the Singapore GP, Windsor alluded to some anecdotes about Carlos’s father. Through these stories, he summarized how smart & calm nature ran through in this Spaniard racing family. He said, “He is just not a normal racing dad as you’d expect. He is just very very calm & totally aware of everything that’s going on and doesn’t say much. Doesn’t get wound up like a lot of racing dads. I think that is a great thing for Carlos [Sainz]. The more I think about it, the more I think that whole family regime has been really good for him.”

Sainz’s strategy to give Lando Norris the DRS to defend his lead was certainly a genius move. Keeping calm under intense pressure reflected what Windsor stated about his father. As they say like father, like son. Whether this would help Carlos to win a championship in F1, as his dad did in the Rallying circuit – Time will tell.

Read More: “Win the F**king Redemption Race”: Carlos Sainz Sr. Reacts to Son’s Race Win, Putting Own Dreams on the Back Burner

Although for the time being, things look on the up for the Spaniard. With back-to-back pole positions & a race victory under his belt, he has already overtaken Charles Leclerc in the standings. The key question is can he keep up this momentum to the end of the season or wither away as he has done in the past?

Can Sainz be the consistent Ferrari #1?

While Ferrari blatantly denies a lead driver-wingman system, it somehow percolates through their operation. Charles Leclerc has often been the lead driver in focus for the Maranello outfit. Thus, when Sainz arrived in 2021, he had to make a place for himself to be on equal footing with Leclerc.

Many believe the Monegasque is better in terms of raw talent & speed than Carlos. However, it didn’t help Leclerc stay in the championship fight last year as even the Scuderia’s car faltered as the season progressed. Precisely, Sainz has showcased more strategic awareness & overall racecraft for the lack of his raw speed. To top it up, in the past 2 races, 2 poles reflect another addition to his arsenal – single-lap qualifying pace.

With qualifying being Leclerc’s competitive advantage, if Sainz can match & beat that, there is little doubt that he can fight & beat the 25-year-old talent from the Principality. That’s what his dad would want him to do for sure.

What do you think? Has Carlos Sainz finally hit his stride to be Ferrari’s #1 driver?

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