Carlos Sainz has revealed he asked McLaren why they weren’t copying Mercedes as Racing Point has done with their 2020 car.
Based on testing, the Silverstone-based team appears to have pulled off a masterstroke by basing this year’s car on last season’s championship-winning W11, with both cars sharing the same engine and gearbox.
That has proven controversial with particularly their midfield rivals, with Sainz even speaking out in Barcelona, but he admits to being curious why his own team wasn’t doing the same.
“I asked my engineers ‘Why don’t we copy Mercedes too?’ and they told me it’s impossible. I believe them and I’m not going to say any more,” he said.
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Clarifying those comments, however, the Spaniard insists he believes Racing Point’s car is within the regulations.
“I never questioned the legality of that car,” Sainz told Marca.
“What I talked about was the spirit of McLaren, which is to be pioneers and a team that invents, not a team that copies but a team that sets the trend.
“I am not interested in what the other teams are doing. I am only interested in seeing mine become the reference and the leading team in the medium and the long term.”
After rivals began to comment on the similarities between the RP20 and last year’s Mercedes, it was suggested Renault could go as far as protesting in Australia.
McLaren was also mentioned as possibly joining them but Sainz wouldn’t say if he thought that was possible.
“I don’t know. That’s a matter for the team,” he added.