Sainz sees Red Bull way ahead: 'Don't have to be a genius to see that'

"From a sporting point of view, it has been a year that started complicated," Sainz poked fun at El Larguero. Nevertheless, the Madrid driver let the Spanish radio programme know that he is satisfied with his personal start to the season. "Still, I cannot complain and I am doing well. Formula 1 is always relative, the car Red Bull has made is one of the most dominant and Mercedes seems to have found the right direction."

The right direction seems to be lacking at Ferrari for now. The Italian team started the season and in Azerbaijan there was even pole position for Charles Leclerc, but in Miami, Monaco and Spain the SF23 was nowhere to be seen. Especially on Sundays, the SF23 is experiencing particular difficulties. "We are not where we want to be, we are the first to be self-critical and we are working to improve. This is where we have to make do for now and we want to maximise with that."

Red Bull size too big for now

Last season, Ferrari could still seriously catch up with eventual world champion Red Bull Racing, but that is not the case in 2023. Red Bull has built a much better car and Sainz cannot deny that either. He also thinks it will be very difficult to get anywhere near Max Verstappen and Perez's team.

"You don't have to be a genius to see that Red Bull is very hard to match this season, which doesn't mean Ferrari can't. We are going to try and that doesn't mean we can't win races. We are going to look for a win. However, it is difficult to force Max into a mistake with such a dominant Red Bull and without pressure," Sainz said.