Sainz aiming for more points in Monaco

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Renault's Carlos Sainz says that wants to extend his current points-winning form into a fourth race weekend at Monaco.

The Spaniard finished in the top ten in Shanghai, Baku and at his home race last week in Barcelona. It's put him into tenth place in the drivers championship.

"Barcelona was another good result but it would be a huge mistake to lose focus," he said this week.

"We’re confident our approach is the correct one and we’re making good progress. It’s about continuing on this trend and keeping up the hard work.

"After Barcelona, the team climbed up to fourth in the Championship and the target is to consolidate that position in Monaco with more points."

Rxtending that form into Formula 1's most famous event of the season would be extra special for the 23-year-old. Like every driver on the Formula 1 grid, the prospect racing on the streets of Monaco is a particular thrill for Sainz.

"It’s always a good feeling going to Monaco, and that excitement ramps up to another level on the Grand Prix weekend," he explained.

"It’s a really unique weekend in every way," said Sainz. "The glitz and glamour is unique, there are stunning sportscars everywhere. And lots of impressive yachts in the harbour making the atmosphere a real thrill.

"You can’t drive around Monaco like you do at any other circuit. It’s unique and requires a completely different approach to any other weekend.

Sainz puts Renault in charge in the mid-field with P7 finish

"You are constantly aware of the walls and you have to keep concentration levels high on every corner of every lap through the weekend.

"Confidence in yourself, and in your car, is key to a successful weekend," he continued. "You build that confidence up in little steps, all the way up to qualifying when you aim to be at 100 per cent."

Sainz has managed a remarkably consistent grid position in 2018 - he's started from ninth place for every race this season except for Bahrain, where he lined up in tenth place.

If he can repeat that sort of form again next weekend, it should put him in a good place for the race.

"Qualifying is crucial in Monaco, and it’s usually very tense," he said. "I would say it’s one of the toughest sessions of the whole season, if not the toughest.

"You need to carry that extra level of determination for it.

"When you nail your qualifying lap at this track, there isn’t any feeling like it, it’s amazing.

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.