Sainz: Leclerc's lead does not make him Ferrari's number one

Carlos Sainz is adamant he is not the number two driver at Ferrari, despite Charles Leclerc's lead over him.

Ferrari have thus far refused to give either driver the number one tag, preferring that Sainz and Leclerc battle it out freely.

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Leclerc has been in the ascendancy this season and now enjoys a 37-point lead over his teammate, but Sainz insists he is on equal status with his teammate.

"None of that has come to me," the Spaniard told Marca.

"I arrive every weekend knowing that I can fight freely with Charles, although you always respect your teammate more.

"I come here with the same mentality."

"In the first stint Charles was faster, and then I was," he added when asked about his performance compared to Leclerc at the Austrian GP.

"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."