McLaren's Lando Norris wishes the 'Carlando' podium was in a different order, but Carlos Sainz Sr, father of Ferrari's Singapore Grand Prix race winner, says the British driver will hit the top step soon; Sainz also believes Fernando Alonso deserves the respect to choose his own F1 future
Wednesday 20 September 2023 07:35, UK
While Lando Norris is still dreaming of his first F1 victory, two-time world rally champion Carlos Sainz Sr says it is "a matter of time" before the Briton takes his first Grand Prix victory.
Norris finished in second position to Sainz Sr's son, who won a frantic race around the streets of Singapore just eight tenths of a second ahead of his close friend and former McLaren team-mate.
Norris has finished in second position three times this season, and when asked about finishing as runner up to Sainz Jr he said the result was "in the wrong order".
Speaking in the press conference, following a breathless end to the race which saw Sainz Jr give Norris the helping hand of DRS to protect both drivers from the oncoming Mercedes, he shared his frustration as not having taken advantage of the struggling Red Bull team at the Marina Bay circuit.
"If Red Bull weren't here, then I'd have had two race wins already," Norris said. "I think there has always been great battles for the 'best of the rest' pack.
"Best of the rest, I would say is not just us [Ferrari, McLaren and Mercedes] - I don't think Aston Martin are far behind.
"I think it's great - often if you didn't have the best team there, the best team always seems to be dominant and take away the show from the rest of it.
"If you took away Mercedes a few years ago and Red Bull now, the battle for the rest of the positions is incredible.
"Many different winners every single race, every season, and even for us this year - if we could compete a bit more against Red Bull, Mercedes would have won, Ferrari would have won, we would have won in Silverstone and Budapest.
"I have dreamed of it a little bit, but I'm sure, like Carlos said, they're [Red Bull] going to be back on track next week."
Following his son's incredible victory at a scintillating Singapore Grand Prix, Carlos Sainz Sr spoke to Sky Sports about his Acciona | Sainz XE team's exploits in Extreme E, an all-electric SUV racing series.
Sainz explained that he would not speak about his son as "he is his own protagonist", but spoke glowingly of Norris, who has a famous 'Carlando bromance' with Sainz Jr.
"I know Lando well from the time in McLaren", said Sainz Sr.
"He's, first of all, a super driver, and, more important, he's a nice person - it is a pleasure always to spend time with him, to play golf with him.
"I know he's a good friend of Carlos, and in that circle, I am a little bit closer to him - he's a super guy and super intelligent.
"He's, for sure, one of the best drivers out there, and it is just a matter of time [before he takes victory], and I'm sure when it comes [the opportunity], he will grab it, and it will be great for him and all the fans."
As far as Spanish motorsport goes, Carlos Sainz Sr passed the baton to Fernando Alonso, with Alono's rise in F1 coinciding with Sainz's retirement from the World Rally Championship during the 2000s.
Sainz Jr is proof that Spanish motorsport is in good hands when his childhood hero walks away from F1 for the final time.
Alonso and the Sainz family's careers are therefore intertwined, and Sainz Sr believes that his friend has "earned the right to decide" on his future.
"Fernando is a special guy and he's proving that all the time, and I think it's up to him when he retires", said Sainz on how long Alonso can continue to perform at such a high level.
"In one moment he decides he's had enough, and then he came back, he proved he has the capacity to stay in Formula 1, and he has the right to decide until when.
"As a friend and as a fan of him, myself, we need to respect him because he earned the right to decide whenever he wants [to retire].
"And he is delivering this year - it's no problem to stay in Formula 1 - but it's up to him to decide when he is tired or fed up."
Alonso stepped away from F1 in 2019 and 2020, winning the 24h of Le Mans and competing in the revered and feared Dakar Rally in the same field as eventual winner Sainz Sr.
On whether his time in another racing series helped Alonso become a better driver, Sainz said: "I believe so and, most importantly, he believes so."
"His experience in Le Mans and Dakar make him a more complete driver, he was doing very well in both specialities, so, I think it was interesting for him to test other categories.
"If Aston Martin is giving him a good car, then, I'm sure he can fight for victory. The problem now is that [with] the domination of Red Bull the rest are struggling to follow the speed."
Following a spinal injury Sainz Sr is not driving for his Extreme E team.
However, as the team boss he has helped his drivers Laia Sainz and Mattias Ekstrom into second position in the championship, three points behind Sky Sports F1's Nico Rosberg's Rosberg X Racing team with just two rounds in Chile to go.
Watch Carlos Sainz Jr, Lando Norris, Fernando Alonso and the rest of the F1 drivers take on the legendary Suzuka circuit in the Japanese Grand Prix live on Sky Sports F1 on September 22-24.
