Carlos Sainz believes he still has plenty of room for growth after a breakthrough year in 2019.

Despite being on the Formula 1 grid since 2015, the Spaniard finally showed his potential by beating Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon to finish sixth in the Drivers' standings in his first year with McLaren.

The highlight was his first F1 podium, after inheriting third in Brazil, and explaining what had been the driving factor behind his strong performances, Sainz admits it was simply the sense of security he felt at the Woking-based squad.

“I think you can see that I’m in a much more comfortable environment right now, more comfortable atmosphere,” he said via Crash.net.

“The certainty of a nice future with McLaren gave me that extra tranquillity just to show my skills a bit better without having to do everything at the moment, instead, thinking more about the mid-term.

“That has helped me to put together some nice races, some nice overtaking moves that before we maybe didn’t see from myself, and that last bit of confidence that I unlocked this year has definitely given me the opportunity."

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The important thing now for Sainz is to continue the progress he made in 2019 and the former Red Bull junior is confident he won't suddenly plateau.

“I think still every area can be improved a lot, but this year I’ve done a very big step and I’m willing to build from here," he commented.

“This year was a big step for me and I just want to continue that way. I’m finding little things to become a stronger driver.”