Sainz unsure where to rank Italian GP performance in F1 career

Carlos Sainz doubts that the 2023 Italian Grand Prix was the strongest weekend of his Formula 1 career, believing some performances went under the radar.

At Monza, Sainz topped two of the three practice sessions, qualified on pole position and led for 14 laps of the race before being passed by Max Verstappen.

Sainz edged out team-mate Charles Leclerc for the final spot on the podium on a weekend of fine margins, which the Spaniard just edged.

When asked if he felt the weekend was the best of his career, Sainz was hesitant to call it so, but did concede it was "probably" the best of his Ferrari career, which includes a maiden pole and win at the 2022 British Grand Prix.

Sainz's reflections

"I'm not sure in F1," Sainz explained to media including RacingNews365.

"I've done other strong weekends in F1 that maybe went a bit unnoticed when I was in the midfield and extracted everything out of the car.

"Of this year, for sure [it is the best], and of my Ferrari career, probably.

"Of my F1 career, it's a tough call but I felt like [over the] weekend I was on it from the beginning, comfortable with the car, especially over one lap.

"I felt really, really at home and I could put together strong laps and snatch pole but [the race] was again a bit tougher and it shows me exactly where we need to keep working on and where I will put my head down and keep pushing the team to keep working on our tyre understanding and our race pace understanding."