Fred Vasseur left the door ajar to a potential Ferrari return for the "mega professional" Carlos Sainz, ahead of his impending departure at the end of the season. (More Motorsport News)
Sainz, who will join Alex Albon at Williams in 2025, is being replaced by seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, ending his three-year stint with the Italian team. ꦅ;
During that time, the Spaniard has won three times, the lates🥂t of which came at the Australian G🌄rand Prix in March, and currently sits fifth in the drivers' championship.
Of his 82 races, Sainz has accumulated 794.5 points, needing 63 points from the final eight races of the campaign to beܫtter his highest total in the competition (246 in 2022).
Vasseur said that he 🍰would “for sure” like to work with Sainz again in the future,&🌳nbsp;as he repeated that the call to replace him with Hamilton “was not an easy one”.
“I’m more🎀 than pleased to have Carlos [ꦗin the team] and I will keep a very good relationship with him,” said Vasseur.
Ferrari's success at the Ital🍰ian Grand Prix, a race that Charles Leclerc emerged victorious in𒉰, marked Sainz's last as a Ferrari driver at Monza.
The Span๊iard has not been on the podium since a third-place finish at the Austrian Grand Prix, but will be aiming to continue his impressi♌ve qualifying form in Baku.
Sainz has improved his qua👍lifying position in the last three Grand Prix's, and if he can do so in Azerbaijan, will equal his second-best streak for Ferrari.
But speaking after the Italian Grand Prix, Vasseur took a moment to reflect o🌞n Sainz's contribution to the Maranello 🦩outfit.
“I have huge respect for Carlos, for what he did for the team in 📖tꦛhe last years, but mainly the last two years with me [as team boss],” Vasseur commented.
“I can perfectly see what he did last year, mainly when we had trouble, he was able to push the team to come back with the pole in Mon𝔍za, to win in Singapore.
"This pushed a little bit probably also Charles to rea🅷ct and he did [man♍y] first rows [on the grid] in a row.
“♏He was clearly part of the recovery of the team last year and this season he’s do༺ing a very good job.
"I know perfectly that the situation was not easy at the beginning of the season, but he’s mega p✱rofessional.
“We had a discussion last winter and we agreed together to push until the last corner of thℱe last lap [of the season] and he’s doing very well.”
