Sainz says team-mate battles must be read through the cars

Carlos Sainz offers an explanation for shifts in team-mate hierarchies in 2026: a new car concept can move the advantage from one driver to another. In an interview reported by Motorsport.com on Sunday, he cites Antonelli–Russell, Hamilton–Leclerc and Verstappen–Hadjar to illustrate his observation.

His own experience adds substance to the idea. He says he had to adapt his driving throughout the ground-effect era, from 2022 to 2025, without finding the natural feel of some earlier cars. That does not mean he stopped achieving good results, but that the way he extracted performance suited him less instinctively.

This reading must retain its status as a hypothesis. The match between a car and a driving style may contribute to gaps; it does not explain every qualifying session or race on its own. Reliability, set-up and execution still need separating. Comparing drivers therefore also means asking what adaptation a car demands and whether a gap persists over time.