"It's because of Sainz that McLaren is where..."

An interesting suggestion was shared recently by Carlos Sainz's former race engineer. Tom Stallard - who is currently working with Oscar Piastri - believes that Sainz's work is what makes the McLaren team competitive; without him, they wouldn't be here.

At the same time, according to Stallard, Sainz also benefited greatly from those times, which allowed him to join Scuderia Ferrari:

"He is a brilliant driver who clearly helped make McLaren competitive. Although he wasn't seen as a real asset at Renault, he showed us the potential he has, and we desperately needed his services. He contributed immensely to our project; we wouldn't be here today if he hadn't been with us during that period. We helped him regain his self-esteem, and as a result, he is now regarded as one of the absolute best drivers.

Now he is having the same positive impact at Ferrari that he had with us; he plays a huge role in the fact that the reds are in contention for the Constructors' Championship." - unexpected yet immense praise came from the rival.