Jean Alesi: “Carlos Sainz reminds me of Alain Prost”. Jean Alesi on Ferrari's line-up.

According to former Scuderia Ferrari driver Jean Alesi, the Maranello team has made an excellent choice in changing the driver line-up ahead of the 2021 Formula 1 season, which is about to start in Bahrain. Replacing Sebastian Vettel is the Spaniard Carlos Sainz, fresh from very good seasons in a growing McLaren and famous for being a ‘team man’, with a very professional and dedicated attitude. Charles Leclerc is the other driver at Maranello: for now the two have gotten along well, but as always the last response is that of the track.

“When I think of Charles and Carlos, Celentano’s song ‘We are the most beautiful couple in the world’ comes to mind. I love them both, Carlos has also grown a lot over the years and did it in the right way. He went through many phases, he never complained, he never made a fuss, he always just thought about being concrete. He succeeded. I’m sure he will continue like this, thinking about the good of Ferrari.”- the former French driver told, as reported by Italian daily newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport.

Carlos Sainz would look a lot like Prost, in terms of attitude, says Jean Alesi. The two French, on the other hand, were teammates in Ferrari in 1991, and the 4-time world champion was also the employer of the Avignon driver at the time of the Prost Grand Prix: “Its main characteristic is that of knowing how to best finalize the work. He does everything step by step, structures the weekend with a view to improve. If he is fifth fastest on Saturday in qualifying, you must expect a podium. In this sense Carlos reminds me of Alain Prost, who did this regardless of the car: on Fridays and Saturdays you didn’t notice him, but then on Sundays he knew how to exploit any opportunity”.

If there are no preferential lanes, the two will be fighting for leadership within the team: “They won’t have to bother each other because they both have to think in terms of reconstruction; moreover Leclerc has already had very strong teammates, he knows how to manage internal competition. Something will change, because Leclerc can no longer think of justifications due to the fact that he is young. And in Sainz he will find a partner who makes very few mistakes” – Jean Alesi recalls.