Red Bull pace 'a challenge' - Sainz

Carlos Sainz has described the early-season pace of Red Bull as 'a challenge' for championship leaders Ferrari.

Ferrari lead the drivers' and constructors' standings ahead of Sunday's Miami Grand Prix, although the margins shrank considerably after the last race at Imola where Red Bull scored a remarkable 58 points from a possible 59.

Ahead of the inaugural race at the Miami International Autodrome, Ferrari start from a front-row lock-out, with Charles Leclerc on pole ahead of Sainz but with Red Bull duo Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez directly behind them.

It is understood Red Bull has the better race package on its car so asked if the pace difference was a concern, Sainz replied: "It's not a concern, it's just a challenge, and we embrace it.

"We're up against one of the best teams in Formula 1. It's one-tenth [of a second] up or down in every grand prix. We just need to make sure that tenth goes in our favour more often than not."

F1 development race "about to start"

Red Bull enjoyed a sizeable upgrade at Imola and although there was no dry running in which to test the parts before cars were locked into parc fermé given the sprint format of the weekend, the team gambled by retaining the update.

It paid dividends across the event but with the development rate expected to be high this year, although limited by the cost cap, Sainz is intrigued to see what the next twist will be.

"The development race is about to start in the next few months and it’s where it is going to start getting exciting," he added.

"We just need to make sure we maximise our chances and from Miami, we start getting them back."

Additional reporting: Ian Parkes

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