From dropped by Renault to promoted to Ferrari, Sainz's incredible comeback

La Formula 1 is often a question of timing. In the summer of 2018, Daniel Ricciardo decides not to continue the adventure Red Bull and agrees to take up the challenge offered to him Renault, mechanically pushing Carlos Sainz towards the exit. And the unknown. 

At the time, the Spaniard was still under contract with the Red Bull brand, which had supported him since his young years, getting him started in Formula 1 at Toro Rosso next to Max Verstappen, then loaned it to Renault. Logic would dictate that Sainz would take the path to Milton Keynes. Except that the Austrian group has set its sights on Pierre Gasly, who shines with Toro Rosso, and therefore frees the Iberian from his commitments. 

Sainz did not take long to find refuge with McLaren but his departure from the Red Bull fold and the comparison against Verstappen at Toro Rosso first, then Nico Hulkenberg at Renault then, do not plead in its favor. Reliable and solid, the former Formula Renault 3.5 champion has certainly established himself as a sure bet in the middle of the field, but does he have what it takes to aim higher? 

Sainz provides the best answers to these questions in 2019 during a perfectly mastered season with McLaren. However, the story started badly with 3 retirements in a row in Australia (engine problem), in Bahrain (clash with Verstappen whom he was attacking to gain 5th place), and in China (clash with his former teammate Daniil Kvyat).

The McLaren driver did not give up and scored his first points in orange in Baku before moving on. Until the summer break, Sainz only missed the top 10 once. The Madrilenian notably signed great performances in Monaco, where he made a cheeky double overtake on the Toro Rossos from the start, in Austria, where he moved up from 19th to 8th position, as well as in Germany and Hungary where his efforts are rewarded with nice 5th places. 

The return to school turns out to be more complicated but it has nothing to do with it. Sainz suffered an engine problem on the first lap in Belgium and retired due to a poorly screwed wheel during a pit stop at Monza. He resumed his march forward in Russia and Japan where he worried the leaders each time at the start and finished comfortably “best of the others”.

The apotheosis took place in Brazil, scene of the Spaniard's first career F1 podium after a crazy race that he had started from the back of the grid due to a new mechanical problem in qualifying. During the final in Abu Dhabi, Sainz snatched 6th place in the general classification at the cost of overtaking on the final lap of the season to enter the points. 

At the dawn of the 2020 season, his rating has never been higher and his name is starting to circulate among the possible candidates for succession. Hag from the winter tests. At the time, however, Daniel Ricciardo seemed in a better position. The Australian from Renault has often been announced on the side of Maranello : his track record, his experience, and his Italian-sounding surname seemed to be all assets in the eyes of the Scuderia. 

Why did Ferrari choose Sainz in the end? We can note a form of convergence of the 3 top teams in terms of management and hierarchy of drivers with a clearly designated and highly paid leader, and a loyal lieutenant capable of securing the big points and grabbing a few victories here and there. All without making waves internally, on the track, and in the press.  

The venerable trans institutionalpine will never say it openly but the expectations placed on Carlos Sainz, under contract until 2022, are not the same as the hopes raised by Charles Leclerc, whose affiliation with Maranello runs until 2024. 

The Spanish, who will be replaced by Daniel Ricciardo at Mclaren, is intelligent enough to know how to be patient and not arrive in Italy with his big shoes. But that won't stop him from believing deep down that he can upset the established order and compete with the new darling of the fans. It would be wrong not to do so.