Ferrari drivers Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz have been neck and neck in terms of performance throughout the Chinese Grand Prix weekend. During the recent sprint race, the pair were fighting for positions on the last few laps.
This led to Carlos Sainz‘s over-the-limit aggressive defending that pushed Charles Leclerc outside the track near turn 14. Following this, the Monagasuqe was instantly on the radio saying they needed to talk about Sainz’s risky defensive maneuver that could have led to a possible crash.
After the race, Leclerc added how the duo has talked about it and everything is fine between them.
The discussions went well and we are all fine. Charles Leclerc said.
But, all of this changed when the Sainz shared that they hadn’t had the time to talk about it and sort things out. Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc have always had close calls when fighting with each other for positions.
The reality is that we didn’t manage to talk, because obviously with this format it’s not like you get time to talk with each other much, We will probably do so tonight.
Carlos Sainz during post-sprint interview with Motorsport.com
This entire scenario wherein both the drivers have shared different answers has sparked up a lot of talk as it is very unusual. Both the drivers added that the scary incident is now in the past and they are looking to maximize the Maranello-based team’s result on Sunday in Shanghai.
Carlos Sainz reveals his thoughts on ‘nothing spicy’ fight with Charles Leclerc during sprint race
While Carlos Sainz has made it known that he hasn’t had the chance to talk to Leclerc regarding their sprint race incident, he feels there was nothing over the top about it. The No. 55 driver shared his thoughts on the dangerous driving between the two.
There’s nothing spicy about it. There’s nothing to say or do, I think we were racing really hard in the sprint. We were racing very hard also some of the other cars, and I didn’t complain. It’s just a matter of obviously keeping as much space as possible to your team-mate, which I will always try to do and I’ve always done in my career.
Carlos Sainz during the same interview
The 29-year-old added that there was nothing spicy about his tussle with Leclerc. Moreover, he also shared how he might have been over-aggressive during the battle as he was compensating for the floor damage he received while fighting Fernando Alonso a few laps earlier. Keeping everything in view, several eyes will be glued on the two SF-24s during tomorrow’s Chinese GP.
More must-reads: