Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz has conceded that it might be hard to compete against Red Bull in 2023, as success in the sport is more to do with the car than the drivers.
Since the 2022 season brought about the biggest technical changes in the sports history, Red Bull has been on another level to its competitors, shown in the team’s untouchable nature in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.
Citing Max Verstappen’s recovery from 15th on the grid, due to a technical issue in qualifying, to 2nd by lap 25, Sainz was clear that the pace on display from Red Bull makes it hard for others to compete.
“They’re in a different league,” Sainz admitted, reflecting the fear from teams in the paddock that Red Bull could be on track to win every race of the season.
READ: Ferrari boss reacts to Charles Leclerc raging at his engineer over key blunder
“Unfortunately, this is a car sport more than drivers, we know that makes the difference more,” he added.
“Although Red Bull has a very strong line-up, obviously, but if a car is really good all the other drivers can’t do much to stay in that fight.”
“I’ve never been a fan of being concerned with one team dominating, because if they’ve done such a good job, they deserve it,” the Spaniard said.
“I wish it was us, and then I would get really angry if people were concerned that we are dominating in Formula 1.”
READ: Sergio Perez accuses Max Verstappen of making them both risk retirement
Sainz’s fears about the success of Red Bull were reflected by his teammate Charles Leclerc, who said that Ferrari have “a lot of work to do before getting to their level.”
After two races, Ferrari finds itself in fourth place in the Constructors’ Championship on 26 points, far behind Red Bull’s 87 point haul.
In the Drivers’ Championship, Sainz is down in fourth on 20 points, while Leclerc is back in eighth with only 6 points.