Sainz remains hopeful about Ferrari: "They just have to take a big step"

Carlos Sainz watched the Belgian Grand Prix from the pit wall after failing to make the start of the race. The Spaniard saw his current employer, McLaren, scoring good points, but his future team, Ferrari, was unable to score any points. Still, Sainz has hope for a good future with the Italian team.

"I think Ferrari itself is most disappointed by the current results. The problems go beyond the engine. I think they also have a problem with the overall grip of the car," Sainz explained to Motorsport.com. "If you lose so much strength compared to a year earlier, which is not normal in Formula 1, then you know you are going to have big problems at Spa."

Became normal to see Ferrari lagging behind

"In F1 you always count on having about the same speed as last year."

Sainz is surprised that Ferrari has such big problems. "It is strange to see Ferrari lag so far behind. However, it is normal when you look at the first few races, it has become normal that they lose so much time on the straight," the Spaniard realises.

Next year Sainz will be driving for the Italian team, but he's not worried yet. "Ferrari just has to take a big step with their engine. I know how difficult that is, since it took Renault three years and Honda a long time. The fact that Renault has managed to move towards Mercedes indicates that you can recover yourself," Sainz concludes.