Carlos Sainz demands Ferrari “to be better” as McLaren comes out as a major threat at Chinese GP

Ferrari managed a fourth and fifth place finish at the 2024 Chinese GP.

Carlos Sainz demands Ferrari “to be better” as McLaren comes out as a major threat at Chinese GP

Carlos Sainz (Via: Imago)

Throughout the Chinese GP, it seemed like the McLarens were on par and quicker than the Ferrari’s. Especially, in the hands of Lando Norris the Papaya team achieved the pole position for the sprint race and then a brilliant P2 finish during the main Grand Prix.

This sudden improved performance from the Papaya team has been a bit of a shock to the Prancing Horses as they’ve usually been the second-best team behind Red Bull this season. So, following their disappointing P4 and P5 finish, Carlos Sainz has revealed how Ferrari needs to be better in the upcoming races to stay ahead of McLaren.

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Ferrari was surprisingly slower than the Woking-based team on pure pace throughout the Chinese GP weekend.

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I think this weekend they have been stronger, thats simple. I think McLaren, on this type of circuit, has proven to have a better rhythm than us. On top, we have qualified behind and we got into trouble in the first round, so there is no chance that we will beat them. We have to do better next time.

Carlos Sainz during an interview with Soymotor.com

The Spaniard revealed that it was surprising to see how well McLaren did in Shanghai, and further, he added that he expects more from his team in the upcoming races. With Ferrari set to bring its first big upgrade package at Imola the fight behind Red Bull is getting feisty.

Charles Leclerc reveals reason for Ferrari’s lack of performance in China

The lack of performance that Ferrari had in China was a massive shock to fans as well as the drivers. Charles Leclerc was quicker when it mattered and finished P4 in the race, but was massively slower than the lights of Sergio Perez and Lando Norris.

Charles Leclerc.
Charles Leclerc (via IMAGO)

After the three-day event, the Monagasque revealed why he thinks Ferrari lacked pace around the Shanghai International Racing Circuit.

I think as a team we were pretty sure that our pace of racing was very strong. However, we hadn’t driven with the hard one over the weekend until now and once we put it we slowed down than we expected, so it was a big surprise. Especially McLaren was very, very strong with the hard.

Charles Leclerc during the same interview

Leclerc revealed how the hard tire was something Ferrari didn’t use throughout the weekend, until the last phase of the race. This sudden change to the hard compounds led to Ferrari’s lack of performance, which was a surprise to the Maranello-based team. After five rounds Ferrari still holds second place in the Constructors standings with 151 points whereas McLaren is steadily closing the gap and is currently 55 points behind in third place.

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