Carlos Sainz vows the greatest respect for Sebastian Vettel, an appreciation that goes back to 2014 when the four-time world champion sent the Spaniard a very special thank you note before leaving Red Bull to join Ferrari.
At the time, Sainz was on the eve of his maiden season in F1 with Toro Rosso, while Vettel was set to open a new chapter in his career with Ferrari.
But before moving on to Maranello, Vettel took the time to personally thank all those that had contributed to his success with Red Bull, including the 20-year-old Sainz who had spent countless hours in the team's simulator at Milton Keynes, especially on race weekends, helping the outfit develop and set-up its RB10 for Vettel's benefit.
"I have a lot of respect for Sebastian," Sainz told Spanish publication Soy Motor.
"I think he is one of the drivers who is going to mark an era in Formula 1, regardless of maybe the most difficult years he has had.
"I’m going to tell a story. The day he said goodbye to Red Bull in 2014, I was a simulator driver and he dedicated a letter to me.
"He thought that the work I was doing in the simulator for him and for the team was important, and he had the kindness to say goodbye to Red Bull by sending a letter to all the employees personalised for each employee.
"He knew that at four o’clock in the morning I spent hours in the set-up recommending settings for his race in Australia and he was kind enough to send me a letter thanking me for that effort in the simulator and those hours of work I had put in.
"And since then I have a special affection for him and I have a relationship with him beyond the cameras, which maybe I have never told him and someday I will tell him, but since then I have a great respect for him."
Sainz famously hit it off with his former partner in crime at McLaren, Lando Norris. But Ferrari's recruit says he's already built a good relationship with Scuderia teammate Charles Leclerc.
The Spaniard says he admires the Monegasque for the hardship he surmounted in 2017, when he lost his father Hervé on the eve of a race weekend in F2 in Baku and went on to win the next day.
"I respect him a lot, we have mutual respect for each other," explained Sainz. "That already gives you a good base to start with.
"I respect him for his sporting career, I respect him for his talent, for what he has already achieved with Ferrari in the few years he has been here, for what he has achieved in Formula 1, and also sincerely for what he has been through.
"Charles has a very particular history that is familiar to me. I have a lot of affection for my father, I have a lot of affection for people close to me, and when I put myself in his position and see what he's been through and where he is now, I respect him.
"It makes me say 'he has to be a good kid, he has to be an interesting guy'. I think so and I say it openly, and that's why I think we get along well too."
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