Carlos Sainz has revealed that he’d rather have Lewis Hamilton as his team-mate, if he had to choose between the seven-time World Champion and Max Verstappen.
The Ferrari driver has plenty of experience racing in the same team as a world-class talent, especially at Ferrari where he’s partnered by Charles Leclerc.
Leclerc is very much seen as Ferrari’s golden boy, and as their best hope of winning a first Drivers’ Championship since Kimi Raikkonen in 2007.
Ahead of his move to Ferrari, Sainz was team-mates at McLaren with Lando Norris for two years.
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Norris is very highly rated and has even been linked several times to Red Bull, with advisor Dr. Helmut Marko having rated him as the “best of the younger drivers” on the grid.
Many view the 23-year-old as the best driver amongst the midfield teams, something which is difficult to argue with.
Sainz, of course, started his own F1 career at Toro Rosso – known now as AlphaTauri – back in 2015, where he was joined by a certain Dutchman.
Sainz and Verstappen were team-mates in their first F1 season, with the reigning World Champion having been just a teenager at the time.
The Spaniard quickly discovered how quick Verstappen was, especially as the Dutch driver was chosen over Sainz at the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix to move to Red Bull.
It’s because he’s already partnered Verstappen which is why he’d prefer to be team-mates with Hamilton, with the 28-year-old liking the idea of trying “something different”.
Sainz also recognises that he’d learn a lot alongside someone as experienced and as successful as Hamilton, something the Ferrari driver “would like”.
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“I’ve already been Max’s team-mate, so I know I would get on well with him and we would have a good [relationship],” Sainz said to The Express.
“I’ve never been team-mates with Lewis, but I guess being a team-mate of a seven-time world champion has to be good for your career and you’re probably going to learn.
“So maybe, just to try something different, I would like Lewis. But honestly, I don’t care. Whoever I have as a team-mate, I’ll embrace it.”