Sainz joined Scuderia Ferrari on a two-year contract from the season partnering Charles Leclerc and replacing Sebastian Vettel. He qualified and finished in 8th place at the Bahrain Grand Prix. He then continued to qualify 11th at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix to finish in 5th place, catching up his teammate, Charles Leclerc. He took his third career podium and first with Ferrari at the 2021 Monaco Grand Prix. Sainz's ability to adapt quickly to Ferrari has been widely praised for performances relative to highly regarded team mate Leclerc in the opening races of the season.