“I have a Good relationship With Mechanics”-Carlos Sainz

Carlos Sainz spoke to motorsport.com in an exclusive interview, and said that he had found extra motivation after the summer to push for good results in the latter half of the season. “For me it would have been very easy after the summer just to say ‘well, let’s finish the year and think about next year’, you know?” said Carlos Sainz. “But I really felt I had something left in Renault not to prove, but I just wanted to finish the year strongly”, he continued. “I found a lot of motivation after the summer break, after Spa, to say ‘I want to finish the year strongly with them'”, said Carlos Sainz.

Sainz also said that his relationship with the team helped him to push himself in the final races of the season. “I have a very good relationship with the mechanics, with the engineers, and with the management here, and because of that I’ve been pushing flat out since then as an eight race sprint until the finish line, to finish well with Renault”, said Carlos Sainz.

“And this is exactly what is happening right now, no? Very strong races. The car is not where it was at the beginning of the year in terms of performance, but the points are still coming, so I am proud of that”, he added. Despite Red Bull opting to go with Daniel Ricciardo, Sainz says there are no hard feelings between them.

“You’ve never heard anything bad from me towards Renault or the Ricciardo signing. For me with Renault, the only regret I have is not having a bit more time with them to get together some better results, you know”, said Carlos Sainz.

“But the situation, life was taking us to this point”,  he continued. “I think they are still happy that I am going to McLaren with Renault power”, he added. “And I am sure we’re going to have a successful time”, said Sainz.

“But it was just the situation, the way it evolved, that I was probably a bit forced out of there, and I had to get a plan B and that plan B was McLaren”, said the Spaniard. “As soon as I got the opportunity I had to sort out my plan B and McLaren was a great option for me.”