Sainz blamed for F1 driver market hold-up

Carlos Sainz has been blamed for holding up F1's driver market.

Sainz has confirmed he is going through mental anguish at present as he weighs up his future, with the choice understood to be between Williams and Stake/Audi.

Once the Spaniard has made a decision, that will likely trigger other driver moves, with several still wondering where their future lies as they are out of contract at the end of the year.

Haas driver Kevin Magnussen is one of those waiting for a move to be made. The Dane is hoping he will be retained by the team, which has options, including reserve Ollie Bearman, whilst it is known talks have taken place with Esteban Ocon amongst others.

Asked as to his current situation and why it was taking so long for a decision to be made, Magnussen said: "Carlos is the cork in the bottle.

"I think a lot of guys are waiting for him to make a move and then eventually all the other pieces of the puzzle will fall. That's the truth of that."

Magnussen hoping for benefit despite 'very fine margins'

Magnussen has endured a difficult season to date, notably being involved in high-profile incidents, a couple of which have left him on the brink of a race ban as he has accrued 10 penalty points on his super licence, two shy of the sanction.

The 31-year-old has also only scored one championship point this season, a tally which he does not anticipate will increase at this weekend's Spanish Grand Prix.

Assessing whether Barcelona's Circuit de Catalunya will play to the strengths of his Haas, speaking to media, including RacingNews365, Magnussen said: "I don't think so.

"I think we feel we're strong in low-speed corners and we feel quite efficient on the straight with the downforce levels we have. It's always like we seem to be just strong on tracks with long straights. This is a very high-speed track and I don't think that's a particular strength of ours.

"It's very fine margins at the moment, but that can also mean that if you're a little bit weaker in some area, then it shows a lot.

"But it feels like we have a chance no matter where we start. We are good on tyre management and degradation is usually good for us, and this is a pretty high-degradation track, so maybe that can be a benefit. We'll see."