Sainz: McLaren and Renault are "equal on pace" despite 21 point lead
F1 News
Carlos Sainz claims McLaren and Renault are equally matched in terms of pace during the 2019 Formula 1 season. McLaren has opened up a 21 point lead over their rivals in the world championship, but Sainz doesn't think that's an accurate representation.
Looking back at the end of last year, Sainz admits McLaren didn't expect to be ahead of Renault at the half-way point in the 2019 Formula 1 season.
"We didn't expect to be ahead of Renault at this point. There was a good trend, we finished the season strongly and we were half-a-second behind [end of last season], so it was very difficult to predict that we'd be in front," Sainz said during the press conference.
Despite their fight with Renault which looks like it'll last the duration of the season, McLaren and Sainz are still aiming higher. The goal at McLaren is pretty clear.
"I don't think we're actually in front. We are equal in performance. But the objective is to keep moving forward, keep looking towards Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes."