Carlos Sainz insists Charles Leclerc has not been chosen as Ferrari's number one driver and can "fight freely".
The Spaniard is 37 points behind his team-mate as we enter the second half of the season. He has shown impressive pace at times and won his first Formula 1 race at the British Grand Prix, but has also suffered some rotten luck.
No driver on the grid has more DNFs than Sainz's four in 2022, and it could be argued that none of them were his fault. And this weekend's French Grand Prix is likely to see him fall further behind after a grid penalty for new Control Electronics fitted to his car.
With Max Verstappen still enjoying a healthy lead at the top of the standings, Ferrari have been urged to make a decision. Sooner or later the Italian team must choose a lead driver as their main opposition to the Dutchman, but they have so far resisted calls to do so.
Sainz confirmed as much when asked about the situation by reporters ahead of this weekend's action. "None of that has come to me," he told Spanish news outlet Marca . "I arrive every weekend knowing that I can fight freely with Charles, although you always respect your team-mate more. I come here with the same mentality. [If the situation changes] it will be communicated, I hope."
His deficit of 37 points to Leclerc may seem like a large gap, but it would become much more narrow if the Monegasque were to suffer another DNF. And that is not an unlikely scenario, given Ferrari's reliability struggles this year, especially when it comes to their power units.
With so many races affected by mechanical problems it is difficult to assess how Sainz has measured up to Leclerc this year, even if the latter is the one ahead in the championship. The Spaniard believes that, in general, it has been an evenly-matched battle between the two team-mates.
"In some parts yes, and others not," he added. "In the first stint Charles was faster, and then I was. The good thing is that before, at the beginning of the season, it didn't happen and now it happens and it's because I've improved and I know I have to keep taking steps forward and I think I have room for it.
"When I discover a couple of other things that I lack in the car, I think I can have a very strong second part of the championship."
