F1, Ferrari: Carlos Sainz dribbles Max Verstappen
Sainz dribbles past Verstappen
Carlos Sainz spoke on the sidelines of the presentation of the new Ferrari, the SF-23, unveiled at the Fiorano track.
Charles Leclerc’s teammate responded to Sky Sports micromanaging Max Verstappen’s statements of a few days ago, in which the Dutch driver seemed more worried about Mercedes than Ferrari in the title fight: “It’s better that Verstappen doesn’t think about us, so we can surprise him. In my opinion he was here in the audience today but his statements are also a way to put pressure on Ferrari. We all make statements to put pressure but once you get out on the track words take a back seat and only the stopwatch and the quality of work matters. Let’s leave him alone.”
Sainz also had an opportunity to comment on the new car that will accompany him throughout the season: “The car is aesthetically beautiful, it will also be challenging to drive but we will be ready for it. The car aesthetically is beautiful, more so than last year’s car, which was already very beautiful. Testing it on the first laps we will try to understand the more technical aspects, such as tire traction, lateral and longitudinal load, but the most beautiful thing is to start pushing. Testing the car will be challenging but also fun, especially because of the presence of the many fans. This is a great emotion for me, spending a day in this historic place, where champions and legends of Formula 1 have lived their history in Ferrari is really special. Today we will start learning the first specifications of the car, giving first impressions on the 15 kilometers we will drive. Although they will only be marginal opinions, they will still be important for the work of our engineers.”