Carlos Sainz has conceded that there is a "mixed feeling" towards his upcoming Ferrari departure, as he felt himself and the Italians were building something positive.
Sainz will, of course, be leaving Ferrari at the end of 2024, as the Italian outfit has opted to sign Lewis Hamilton on a multi-year contract to partner Charles Leclerc.
The Spanish driver has actually made an exceptional start to the season and is the only driver to win a race other than Max Verstappen.
When asked by RacingNews365 how he feels about his upcoming departure considering his current performances, he conceded that himself and the team's project is starting to see positive results, adding to the "mixed feeling" he is experiencing.
"There's a bit of a mixed feeling regarding that, in a way obviously being my fourth year in Ferrari," said Sainz.
"We've been three years working together on the fact that all this hard work, and all the time that I've spent in Maranello, helping this team and developing together with this team, a project that now is starting to pay-off.
"And we are starting to show progress of the [work] with the engineers and Charles and Fred and the fact that we're performing better as a team.
"And it's giving me a car that I trust more. And all this feedback from the last few years has been put together and is delivering, this makes me feel very happy about this year."
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Ferrari exit 'not my decision'
Whilst he is happy with how things are currently going, he is "sad" that himself and the Maranello-based side cannot take their partnership into the future.
However, despite the sadness of their relationship ending, Sainz is seeing it as a next step in his life.
He plans to treat his Ferrari exit the same way as he did when he left Toro Rosso and Renault and will reflect on his time with the Italians in the future.
"I've been sad about the fact that we cannot continue the journey together," conceded Sainz.
"Because I feel like, in a way, we were doing a good job together and everything is taking the correct shape into the future and into the regulation change of 2026.
"But that's life. That's how life has decided to go again, it was not my decision or not my first choice, as you guys know. But it might mean that there's something even better to come in the future.
"So in life, I think you always need to see things once things happen, and then look back. Like when I left Toro Rosso at the time and Renault at the time.
"And now when you look back, everything makes sense, how life planned out. And this is another case of maybe in the future, look back and we'll see how it all played out."
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