Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz say there’s no fear at all when it comes to fighting Lewis Hamilton on track.
Of course, the Monegasque already has prior experience of going head-to-head and winning against the seven-time world champion, with their duel at Monza in 2019 one of the highlights of that season.
And asked about the prospect of doing so again in the future, Leclerc insists Hamilton’s achievements haven’t changed how he sees him.
“Whenever I put the helmet on every driver is the same,” he was quoted by The Guardian.
“I have huge respect for everyone on the grid and Lewis has achieved so much in the sport, but when I put the helmet on I try to fight him as much as I do with anybody else on the grid.”
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New teammate Sainz hasn’t had the opportunity to race Hamilton in equal cars just yet, but he echoed Leclerc’s comments on the possibility.
“I see a Mercedes and I want to fight that Mercedes as much as I want to fight anyone else,” he explained.
“I don’t see Lewis Hamilton inside the car. The respect I have for Lewis is huge and all drivers have a lot of respect for the guy who has seven world titles – it’s incredible – but you never think about who is inside the car, you always try to beat him.”
Of course, Ferrari is very unlikely to be challenging Mercedes in 2021, after a lacklustre 2020 often saw them finish over a lap down.
But Sainz is confident the Scuderia can get back to where they were in the second half of 2019.
“For me to achieve this [a Ferrari drive] at 26 years old, is something that I have obviously fought for,” he said at the official team launch last week.
“In five years, my target is to be a World Champion. I do believe that Ferrari is the best place to try and achieve that. I think I am in the right place at the right time and we just need a bit of time to try and make it happen.
“Right now Ferrari is in an important moment, we are trying to recover together and bring Ferrari back to the top, so it requires a lot of team building,” the Spaniard noted.
“As soon as the results start showing there is going to be a great momentum generated inside the team, and we are all going to feel even more excited about the future.
“Now what Ferrari needs is two good drivers pushing each other and pushing in the same direction to make sure the car keeps getting quicker and quicker.”