Sainz: "He'd win races straight away" in a better car

New McLaren driver Carlos Sainz has praised his former teammate Nico Hülkenberg, saying the German "would win races straight away" if he had a better car than his current team Renault provide him.

Hülkenberg, of course, famously holds the record for most races in F1 without ever getting on the podium - 156 starts and counting.

Still, the Hulk has been one of the better drivers of 2018, clinching the 'B title' - coming seventh in the drivers' championship - and overall looking like the strongest driver in midfield.

Sainz partnered the German for just over a year at Renault and the two looked very evenly matched. Sainz, who was forced to switch teams after Renault announced they signed Daniel Ricciardo from Red Bull, thinks Hülkenberg could do a lot better, if he would be given a better car.

"The year that I came to Renault, Nico was having already a very strong year," Sainz told Autosport.

"I saw him performing at the highest level I've seen I think [anyone] perform in the midfield for years.

"For me he's one of those guys that you give him a Mercedes, Ferrari or Red Bull he'd win races straight away.

"But unfortunately you guys are not able to see it, not able to calculate it, as Formula 1 works like that.

"Nico is one of those guys that I've learned a lot from and I'm going to go to McLaren with that experience, having shared a team with one of the most talented drivers in the grid right now."