Carlos Sainz admits "it's natural to want to beat your teammate more than anyone else"

Carlos Sainz admits “it’s natural to want to beat your teammate more than anyone else”. Carlos on teammate relationship.

The Carlos Sainz – Lando Norris duo at McLaren
When McLaren decided to revolutionize its driver lineup at the end of 2018, bidding farewell to Fernando Alonso and choosing not to renew Stoffel Vandoorne’s contract, they undoubtedly took a bold path. The historic British team signed Carlos Sainz, who came from Renault and was still without a Formula 1 podium, and rookie Lando Norris, who was just 19 years old at the time.

Five years later, the careers of both drivers have shown that the gamble paid off, as both the Spanish and the Englishman are among the top talents on the starting grid, and both have great consistency as their distinguishing feature. The duo, who also got along well off the track, managed to push McLaren to achieve results more in line with its reputation, with a fourth-place finish in 2019 and a third-place finish in 2020, achievements that the team hadn’t seen since 2012.

Carlos Sainz talks about his current relationship with Lando Norris
In 2020, the irresistible call from Scuderia Ferrari for Carlos Sainz led to the separation of the two teammates, with Lando Norris becoming the reference driver for McLaren, showcasing his performances, as Daniel Ricciardo experienced before and Oscar Piastri does now.

In an interview with the Express Sport, Carlos Sainz discussed his current relationship with Lando Norris: “Our relationship is stronger than ever. I think the fact that we are no longer teammates lightens the pressure and rivalry that you have with your teammate. When you share the car and the team, it’s natural to want to beat the only other driver who drives the same car more than anyone else. But now that we are no longer teammates, we still see each other, but in a more relaxed way, knowing that we no longer have that rivalry. We still play golf together and go out for dinner occasionally,” explained the Ferrari driver.