JAKARTA - Ferrari's Carlos Sainz is concerned Max Verstappen will be able to "comeback" and win the Belgian Grand Prix on Sunday after seeing the rival's Red Bull car speed.
Sainz inherited pole position from Verstappen who was 0.6 seconds ahead in qualifying but found his starting position to withdraw to P15 due to penalties related to engines and gimmicks.
Meanwhile, Sergio Perez became the other deputy for the Red Bull team in the front row.
However, Sainz believes the fight at the Spa-Francorchamps Circuit later is not about him and Perez.
"Especially looking at the speed Max has, I think as soon as there's a Safety Car, it can help him cut the distance, or even with the speed he has for 44 laps, he can come back. And we've seen him do that before," Sainz said. quoted by Antara from the official F1 website, Sunday
"It will be a direct fight with Checo and Mercedes if they have speed, but we will try to escape of course," said Sainz.
His teammate Charles Leclerc, who took the lead just five points from Perez in the standings, will start from P16 due to a similar penalty, even though he finished P4 in qualifying.
The Monaco driver has also seen how quickly Verstappen, who is 80 points ahead as the leader of the standings in the "back" race of the Dutchman's Belgian mixed blood.
"When you look gaping with Max, it's... a little worrying. They're very fast," Leclerc said.
"They were too fast, we couldn't do anything," he said. "Nothing will change anything for our starting position tomorrow. We have to beat Max in qualifying today but this car is not at the same level."
Meanwhile, Verstappen has the opportunity to win three consecutive wins in order to strengthen his position of defending the world title.
"I think this car has good speed, I want to go forward, and I'm at least on the podium," Verstappen said.
"I have to go through, of course the first lap, that's the most important thing. After that I need to pass through several cars to reach a competitive position," said the Red Bull driver.
Belgium started a triple header this season before the F1 circus continued to Zandvoort and Monza.
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