Toro Rosso trounces Red Bull, most points since '09

Toro Rosso is celebrating after securing its biggest single-race points' haul for more than six years after Carlos Sainz and Max Verstappen both got the better of Red Bull in the Malaysian Grand Prix.

With Verstappen capturing the headlines by becoming the youngest person to score points in an F1 race at just 17 years-old in seventh, team-mate Sainz added to their joy by following up in eighth place having started down in 15th place.

A positive result from a lowly grid slot, Sainz was thrilled to score for a second race in a row, not least because it would see him finish ahead of the Red Bull 'A' Team.

"It was a mega day for me, from where we were starting and to go up to eighth with such a tough strategy, I am very happy.

"We had some good battles out there, particularly with my team-mate," he said, referring to a late battle with Verstappen over seventh. "It was not so exciting as I knew I had to let him past as we were on completely different strategies. The team wanted to have both cars in front of Red Bull and the way to do that was to not get into a mess.

Notching up 10 points for its troubles, it is the best combined points' haul for Toro Rosso since the 2009 Australian Grand Prix, when Sebastien Buemi and Sebastien Bourdais scored identical results. Furthermore, with Toro Rosso comfortably out-performing Red Bull, Sainz says the results offers a big boost.

"It gives us huge confidence and motivation to keep up the good work. The team is doing a great job and beating the Red Bulls is something amazing."