Securing third place in the Constructors’ Championship was “the best way” for Carlos Sainz to end his two years at McLaren in Abu Dhabi.
Fifth for Lando Norris and sixth for Sainz, who was cleared post-race by the stewards for allegedly driving too slowly in the pitlane, gave the Woking-based team the points they need to overhaul Racing Point and claim their best finish in the Teams’ standings since 2012.
And for the Spaniard, it was the perfect conclusion to a stint in his career which has taken him to new heights, one that has earned him a Ferrari drive from next year.
“Very happy, very happy for everyone,” Sainz said. “I think we deserve it. We’ve done an incredible year.
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“It hasn’t been easy because we’ve not been third quickest at times. I think great execution, a great job by everyone back at base. Congratulations and I think it’s the best way to sign off my time with McLaren.
“It’s been an incredible two seasons for me. I am extremely happy to be part of this great progression. The team that is always getting better and better.
“I have obviously a new challenge ahead of me that I can’t wait to be honest but at least today, it’s time to celebrate with McLaren, time to enjoy this last couple of years, time to reflect and make sure we celebrate properly P3 because it’s huge for this team.
“It just shows that the team is going in the right direction so I am very happy.”
During his two years at McLaren, Sainz and teammate Norris have become known for their bromance, providing plenty of fun and banter along the way.
But Lando also thinks that strong relationship has been key to pushing the team forward.
“That has been one of the most important things in achieving P3 this year was the combination of good mates and good friendship but also how competitive and how much we want to beat each other,” Norris said. “I think when you put them both together you get the perfect combination to get P3.
“There’s been a lot of races this year when we’ve executed things very well as a team between us and we’ve scored much better results because of that. That’s because I respect Carlos, he respects me and we wanted us to do the best job for the team and things like today demonstrate that perfectly in our teamwork.”