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Sainz reveals rallying made him a more complete driver

Sainz reveals rallying made him a "more complete driver"

02-01-2019 15:30
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Bobby Vincent

Carlos Sainz Jr. has admitted his previous experience in rally-car driving has made him a "more complete driver", allowing him to shine in Formula One.

Sainz was rewarded with a seat at McLaren in 2019, after impressing last season at Renault.

His father, Carlos Sainz Snr. is a two-time World Rally champion, and Sainz Jr. has filmed numerous rally-driving with his dad over the past 18 months.

"I worked based on the theory that it doesn't make you a worse driver," Sainz said to Formula1.com. "If anything it makes you a better, a more complete driver, so I'm still going to do it."

Sainz is not the first F1 driver to take on rallying either, with Robert Kubica speaking to Formula 1's official podcasr about it recently.

"(It was) the desire to become a more complete driver, to find something others don't have or that I can improve," Kubica said on his rally-car driving experience. "It's true that I paid a big price - and I'm still paying it. But it was not purely for fun."

Sainz was then asked whether some F1 drivers are missing out by not competing in rally-car competitions, and the McLaren driver replied: "I think they're missing a lot of fun if they're doing (it), that's for sure.

"I enjoy it a lot and every time I can try and put myself in a rally car and go for it. It might not change you, might not make you better, but for sure it doesn't make you worse. It's something that gives me a good feeling, it's good fun and it could actually could make me have a better car feeling and better car handling."