'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Former F1 champion Mario Andretti feels that Ferrari will likely move Carlos Sainz to a supporting role by mid-season. When questioned on when Ferrari might be looking to move one of the drivers to a supporting role, Mario Andretti said:
"We know Binotto leaves them free to fight. We will see halfway through the season who’s ahead of the other, then the teammate has to support the other one"
Andretti didn't shy away from praising Carlos Sainz, who has been struggling this season. Sainz has not had an ideal start to the season, to say the least. He had a DNF in the Australian GP where he ended up in the gravel early in the race and then, he had another DNF in Imola where he clashed with Daniel Ricciardo at the start of the race.
Sainz is already 51 points behind his teammate Charles Leclerc after just five races this season and has not looked competitive against his teammate at any given point this season. Talking about the two drivers Andretti said:
“But both are very good. Carlos had some problems so far, but he knows he has the car. And having two drivers able to win is a good thing for the team."
Ferrari's history of team orders
Ferrari as a team has never really shied away from using team orders in any capacity. The team was a strong proponent of it during the Michael Schumacher era, when Rubens Barrichello was hired as the second driver of the team and even had to give up wins for the German at various events.
Even during Fernando Alonso's time at Ferrari, the team had a clear No.1-No.2 driver dynamic, Alonso being the number one driver and Felipe Massa playing the supporting role within the team. Massa, too, had to sacrifice a win in the 2010 German GP, where he was ordered to let Alonso through. Not to forget, the time when Massa's gearbox seal was broken by the team so that Fernando Alonso could move up a spot and be in a better position to challenge Sebastian Vettel for the championship.
The question is whether Carlos Sainz can maximize his results in the next few races to level the playing field and, perhaps, avoid the same fate from befalling him?
