Carlos Sainz Concocts Masterplan to Woo New Ferrari Boss Frederic Vasseur to Make Up for Charles Leclerc’s Headstart

Ferrari will be looking to bury its 2022 demons and make a fresh start this season. They have already made a step towards a different season battle, by onboarding Frederic Vasseur as team boss. He has got a good historical background with Charles Leclerc. So, many speculate that Leclerc will get a preference at the Scuderia in 2023. But, his teammate Carlos Sainz feels he has got a masterplan to woo Fred Vasseur to negate Leclerc’s familiarity with the new boss.

As per Racefans.net, Sainz told Autosprint about how the Vasseur-Leclerc’s prior relationship ain’t worrying him. He said, “I don’t think I’m starting [my relationship with Frederic Vasseur] from scratch. As I said, I’m sure I’ll get on well with him and he’ll be happy with me when he sees me work, with my relationship with the team and with Charles [Leclerc].”

Carlos may have concocted this plan of winning over the Frenchman’s trust to tackle Leclerc’s historical headstart. Leclerc worked with Fred Vasseur during his GP3 days at ART in 2016. Vasseur again was the Monegasque driver’s boss at Alfa Romeo when he made his debut in 2018.

The Spaniard further stated, “I think his well-tested relationship with Leclerc will be very useful to everyone, also to accelerate his acclimatization here [at Ferrari].”

Sainz certainly wants to be in close contention with Leclerc for the championship. Whether he can manage to keep up his pace consistently will be a major factor in how Vasseur manages him.

Read More: Taking Ferrari’s Miserable Season Into Account, Carlos Sainz Decides To Keep His Mouth Shut Going Into 2023: “I Won’t Say Anything Until…”

Sainz has always been a solid driver with consistent results. While it took him a while to get his first race win in 2022; Carlos has got all the ingredients to battle against the elite in F1. But, the major question is can he actually ever that elusive world championship crown?

Has Carlos Sainz got it in him to be an F1 World Champion?

When Carlos Sainz arrived in F1 with Max Verstappen at Toro Rosso, the Dutchman beat him fair and square. Nevertheless, Sainz subtly kept getting better even after leaving the Red Bull stable. The Smooth Operator has since made his way up the grid to land at a top team in Ferrari.

While the grit of this progress is commendable, Carlos knows only one thing that proves your mettle in F1 as the best – Winning the World Championship. Now, over the years he has shown several aspects an elite champion driver in F1 possesses.

Be it overtaking ability, race craft, tire management, strategy calls, or consistency of results; Carlos has got the all-around abilities as an F1 winner. It is about whether he can raise his game to another level and fight for the title with someone like Verstappen or Hamilton.

Many say Sainz lacks the raw talent and speed that Verstappen and Leclerc have. Although, the Spanish driver is a lot more clever, shrewd, and consistent in terms of the strategic aspects of racing. If he can use these strengths to outwit his teammate and Verstappen; the title fight is on for him.

WATCH THIS STORY: Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc achieve rare F1 feat with Disney collaboration

Eventually, it will be dependent on whether Carlos Sainz can maintain his consistency over the full-season battle. Though, if he can, the Smooth Operator can script his name in F1 history for sure. Do you think Sainz be an F1 champion?