Sainz: Ferrari engine still "good step" ahead of rival F1 power units

Although Honda's engine and the Renault powerunit that McLaren uses have both delivered a step forward in power in 2019, Sainz is under no illusions that Ferrari is the standout.

This is especially the case in qualifying when Ferrari can use its best engine modes.

"Renault has made progress definitely in terms of power," said Sainz. "You see pretty much in every track this year we are closer to the top.

"But there is still one engine that to me is excelling, which is the Ferrari engine in qualifying mode. It is still a good step ahead.

"Renault have made progress on the power side, the new [upgraded] engine is supposed to be progress on the reliability side, which is where we probably are at the weakest.

"But hopefully we will keep moving forward and bringing steps. Compared to last year we definitely have more power."

Now Ferrari has proven Mercedes can be overhauled on the power stakes, Red Bull's Pierre Gasly thinks Honda can now also target Mercedes.

When asked how far behind Mercedes Honda currently is, Gasly said: "Not too far.

"At the moment, Ferrari clearly stands out in terms of straightline speed. The one we need to target, Mercedes, is sort of more or less in the middle."

But Gasly is happy with the steps forward that Honda has made over the winter, having used its engine for his debut season with Toro Rosso last year.

"Quite a big step, I would say in every area," he said whas asked about the differences from last year.

"Performance-wise, we have quite a lot more than we had last year. Reliability, things run pretty smoothly since the beginning of the season for us - so honestly everything is improved.

"For sure, there's still quite a step especially compared to Ferrari that are clearly the fastest down the straight, but we know [Honda] keep pushing and more performance will come from the engine."