Sainz believes 'Red Bull are within reach' after Abu Dhabi qualifying

Ferrari star Carlos Sainz believes Red Bull can be caught in Sunday's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, but acknowledges that Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez are competing in the quicker car. The Spaniard was outqualified by the Red Bull pair and Scuderia teammate Charles Leclerc, and will start the race in P4, directly behind Perez.

Sainz has dropped to sixth place in the Drivers' Championship due to the pace of Mercedes over the past few race weekends, and is hoping for a podium to end a fairly disappointing season.

After qualifying, Sainz told Sky Sports F1: "They [Red Bull] are within reach, but they are quicker and have a faster car this weekend. We will try everything to out race them, but if they are three tenths quicker in quali then in the race they are half a second quicker."

With Red Bull looking imperious around the Yas Marina circuit, Sainz admitted that Ferrari's fight is likely to be behind them rather than in front of them, with the Silver Arrows starting in P5 and P6.

"There is a bit of a gap there always in the race, but the most important thing today is we beat the Mercedes, which they look quick all weekend, and that we havea good chance at beating them tomorrow," Sainz revealed.