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Carlos Sainz completed the final race of his first season with Ferrari on an absolute high, having secured third place in the race behind the two title contenders.
With 15 points from the last podium place, Sainz jumped from P7 to P5 in the drivers' standings. This puts him ahead of both McLaren drivers and teammate Charles Leclerc. The 27-year-old has also extended his record to a 14-race finishing streak, higher than anyone else on the grid.
Carlos Sainz reflected on his podium and first year with Ferrari, saying:
"It is truly a great way to a very positive first year with Ferrari for me. A very challenging year but in the, end it turned out to be a very strong one... A year that I'm very proud of."
A rather underwhelming race, as it seemed at the start, ended up delivering one of the most controversial and thrilling outcomes with both title contenders on the podium ahead of Sainz, who secured his fourth podium for Ferrari this season.
"It is more symbolic than anything else" - Carlos Sainz on finishing ahead of Leclerc
To many people's surprise, Carlos Sainz finished the season ahead of his teammate Charles Leclerc by 5.5 points, however, the Spaniard claims that the individual standings, in this case, are merely "symbolic" of how far the team has come this year.
He added:
"More symbolic, more than anything, because it's not like finishing 5th, 6th, or 7th in the championship today would have changed my mood going into the winter break but it's another strong sign that this year was positive for me."
Sainz entered Abu Dhabi behind Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris in P7 and left the Grand Prix with a drastically different result in P5. The partnership between Sainz and Leclerc this season and the overall driver pairing received praise throughout the year for being at its closest and most consistent.
