Carlos Sainz lavished praise on his new employers after completing a successful first test day with McLaren in Abu Dhabi.
Rather than take what was considered the logical step of replacing Daniel Ricciardo at Red Bull, the Spaniard opted to succeed his hero and mentor Fernando Alonso at the Woking-based team having also being dropped by Renault.
Despite McLaren’s problematic year, however, Sainz appears very upbeat as he looked back on his first experience in papaya.
“Going out of the garage today on my first day as a McLaren driver was pretty much a dream come true,” said the 24-year-old.
“When I finally completed my first run I felt extremely good, and I must say it’s been a very straightforward day.
“The team has made me feel at home from lap one and from day one yesterday when I started working with them.
“I did a lot of laps today and I’m grateful to the team for giving me such a reliable car to be able to initiate me in this new chapter and new style of car.”
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Sainz completed the second highest total of 150 laps on Wednesday finishing fifth overall and was particularly satisfied to have a trouble-free day.
“From the first lap to the 150th lap, I enjoyed them all; the feeling was good and we’ve been able to end the season in the best way possible,” the second generatio driver declared.
“As soon as I got out of the box I felt comfortable in the car. Of course, there are always going to be details to improve and new things to adapt to, like the seat and the driving style, but from the first lap I could spend time adapting and getting to know all the new controls and procedures. It’s been great.
“It’s been an intense few days after the race finished here in Abu Dhabi, learning a lot of names and understanding how the car works.
“I’m looking forward to spending more time back at the factory over the winter getting to know the team better and preparing as much as we can for 2019.”