Carlos Sainz is a driver with skills to show on the track along with having technical knowledge about the performance of cars. Sainz often understands the situation and tries to maximize Ferrari’s output. After finishing on the podium along with Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri, he judged the pace of McLaren and it did not look good for Ferrari.

McLaren is catching up in the constructor’s championship and although the gap between Ferrari and Red Bull is closer, Sainz believes they are still not competing with the defending world champion team. Judging from the last few races, the Spaniard has analyzed where both of their competitors are strong and has dropped a verdict as to who their real competition is.

Carlos Sainz prepares for battle with his former team

McLaren has picked up pace since Miami, where Lando Norris beat Max Verstappen on merit. Even at Imola, Lando Norris was extremely quick as he was closing in the gap with Verstappen until the last lap. Carlos Sainz understood that although at Monaco they defeated Red Bull and McLaren, the papaya army was coming for them.

Following the Monaco GP, the 29-year-old driver discussed the main threat that Ferrari is facing this season. Sainz told RaceFans, “My common sense tells me that on normal circuits Red Bull should continue to be the favorite. So it will be a very close fight with McLaren and us. I think the three of us are at a very similar level.”

It’s true that Red Bull was far behind at Monaco, but that was because it is a rather unconventional race. There is barely any room to overtake and the top 10 remained the same since the starting grid. Red Bull does better at tracks that require speed. On the other hand, McLaren’s upgrades have made the car a great all-rounder machine that the drivers have capitalized on since Miami.

Sainz explains this when he says, “Our last reference on a normal circuit is Imola and Miami, and if I look at those two circuits, it seems that we are half a tenth behind McLaren and maybe one or two-tenths behind Red Bull.”

While he believes the competition is with McLaren, here is what he had to say about Red Bull.

Sainz’s perspective on Red Bull following the Monaco GP

The Spaniard spoke about the championship leaders and how he expects them to perform in the coming races. He explained, “I think Canada is quite specific, but in Barcelona or any European circuit, where I consider it to be a normal circuit, I still think that Red Bull will be the favorite, but I don’t think they will dominate like they used to.”

Sainz knows by now that Ferrari has reached the race pace they need to contest Red Bull, and so has McLaren. Although the RB20 might be a better car on those circuits, he believes it’s now that the competition is stiff.

Explaining the situation of his team compared to Red Bull, Sainz said, “Being 24 points behind Red Bull in the constructors’ championship, you can see that when you put pressure on them, yesterday Max made a mistake in Q3 on his second lap, Checo was left out in Q1. We all need to be there to show that we are. Things can also happen to Red Bull.”

The team that seemed undefeatable at the beginning of the season is now showing their vulnerability and despite believing that McLaren is their real competition, the team can overtake Red Bull in just 1 race if things go according to them.