‘I really wanted this one’ – Sainz overjoyed as he achieves goal of ‘one more win’ before Ferrari exit with Mexico masterclass

Carlos Sainz was full of smiles after the Mexico City Grand Prix as the Ferrari driver avoided the drama around him to convert a spectacular pole position into a statement victory.

Sainz lost the lead to Red Bull’s Max Verstappen at the start but bounced back following an early Safety Car period to reclaim P1 with a bold move into the first corner – the Spaniard late on the brakes to dive up the inside.

READ MORE: Sainz surges to Mexico victory ahead of Norris and Leclerc as Verstappen hit with two penalties for Norris moves

With Verstappen and Lando Norris engaging in another pulsating battle, Sainz pulled clear at the head of the pack, keeping Charles Leclerc in check after his team mate provisionally benefitted from the title rivals’ squabbling.

Staying composed through to the chequered flag, Sainz crossed the line to engineer Riccardo Adami describing the drive – which earned the fourth victory of his F1 career – as a “masterclass”.

“Gracias Mexico!” Sainz beamed post-race. “It’s incredible to see this crowd, I’ve been feeling their support all week. I feel like I have a lot of fanbase here in Mexico and they gave me a lot of strength to do the weekend that I’ve done.

“Honestly, I really wanted this one, I really needed it also for myself – I wanted to get it done. I’ve been saying for a while I wanted one more win before leaving Ferrari and to do it here in front of this mega crowd is incredible.

“Now, four races left [before moving to Williams], I want to enjoy as much as possible and if another one comes, I will go for it!”

AS IT HAPPENED: Follow the action from the Mexico City GP as Sainz wins thriller after latest Norris/Verstappen battle

Asked about his decisive move on Verstappen for the lead, Sainz added: “I didn’t prepare it, to be honest. I was just a bit annoyed at the start, having lost position to him.

“I said [to myself], ‘I need to surprise him one way or another’, because Max is super difficult to pass – he’s proven it many, many times. I was a bit far back, but I said, ‘I have nothing to lose, I’m just going to send one down the inside’.”

Meanwhile, Leclerc – who sat out first practice to give Ferrari-backed future Haas driver Ollie Bearman another outing – admitted that he had no answer to Sainz’s pace throughout the weekend.

“It was a difficult one,” said the Monegasque, who lost P2 to Norris with a wild moment at the final corner late in the race. “On the first stint it was all about trying to manage the temperatures, which was quite difficult. At the end, we did the best race we could do.

“The whole weekend I’ve been a little bit on the back foot, so third place was the best we could achieve on my side today. [It was an] amazing race by Carlos today, and it’s a good weekend overall for the team, which is positive.”

RACE START: Watch a dramatic getaway in Mexico City as Verstappen beats Sainz to Turn 1 while Gasly, Albon and Tsunoda clash

Ferrari’s points haul moves them above Red Bull and up to second in the constructors’ standings, with leaders McLaren only 29 points ahead – Leclerc underlining their desire to end a title drought that stretches back to 2008.

“We are working super well as a team,” he added. “I think it’s been quite a few races now that we’re coming back to the level we should be at. It’s amazing to see.

“Obviously the constructors’ is still our target and with weekends like this we are getting closer to it. I hope we can continue in that direction and get that constructors’ title, which is very important.”