Carlos Sainz issues Williams status update amid ‘less certainty’ admission
Williams driver Carlos Sainz prepares for the start of the 2025 Hungarian Grand Prix
Carlos Sainz say he is “very confident” that his decision to join Williams from Ferrari for the F1 2025 season will prove the right one.
It comes in light of the rapid progress shown by the soon-to-be Audi F1 team over recent months, culminating in Nico Hulkenberg’s maiden podium finish.
Carlos Sainz ‘very confident’ Williams the right place to be for F1 2026 and beyond
Additional reporting by Thomas Maher
Sainz was informed early last year that he would be forced to make way at Ferrari for Lewis Hamilton, sparking a race for the Spaniard’s signature.
The four-time race winner was heavily linked with the likes of Alpine and Sauber, which will be rebranded Audi F1 for the F1 2026 season, before opting to sign a multi-year contract with Williams.
Sainz has largely struggled since his switch to Williams, finishing no higher than eighth across his first 14 appearances for his new team and trailing team-mate Alex Albon by a massive 38 points.
Carlos Sainz vs Alex Albon: Williams head-to-head scores for F1 2025
👉 F1 2025: Head-to-head qualifying statistics between team-mates
👉 F1 2025: Head-to-head race statistics between team-mates
Meanwhile, Sauber has enjoyed a revival under new boss Jonathan Wheatley, the former Red Bull sporting director, with 37-year-old Hulkenberg collecting the first podium of his career at last month’s British Grand Prix at Silverstone.
Sauber’s progress ahead of next year’s rules reset has led to suggestions that Sainz picked the wrong option by signing for Williams in July 2024.
Speaking to media including PlanetF1.com at the recent Hungarian Grand Prix, Sainz admitted that he wasn’t so sure that Williams was the right choice for his career one year ago.
Yet he is more convinced than ever that he will reap the rewards of his switch to Williams in the years to come as the Mercedes-powered team targets a significant step forward under the new F1 2026 rules.
Sainz said: “I definitely felt last year when I took the decision, Williams was ninth in the championship and there was less certainty that maybe Williams was the right choice in my career.
“Now I think, a year on, I’m very confident of the decision I took.
“I’m very glad, looking at the progress the team is showing and the momentum we’re building into ’26, looking at everything that’s been done in the team into ’26, ’27, ’28 which is why I came to this team.
“I didn’t come to this team for the results of ’25; I came for the potential of ’26, ’27, ’28.
“I think the more I see what’s being done and the more I am with the team, the better it looks.
“At the same time, there’s a lot of things to work on and to improve as a team.
“There’s a very long list of things that we are trying to get through and work on.
“But happy with that decision and I think we just need to keep our head down and, at some point also, the results of ’25 will give momentum going into ’26.”
More on Carlos Sainz and Williams from PlanetF1.com
Sainz’s comments come after Johnny Herbert, the former F1 driver, Sky F1 pundit and FIA steward, claimed that the Spaniard could make a sensational return to Ferrari to replace Hamilton for F1 2026.
Hamilton has endured his worst start to a season in F1 2025, failing to register a podium finish across the first half of the campaign.
The seven-time World Champion appeared to cast doubt over his Ferrari future during a difficult weekend in Hungary, where he qualified a distant 12th on a day team-mate Charles Leclerc set pole position.
After repeatedly referring to himself as “useless”, Hamilton suggested that Ferrari should consider replacing him before alluding to potential trouble behind the scenes at Maranello.
He said: “There’s a lot going on in the background that’s not great.”
Herbert believes Hamilton’s comments could open the door for a mutual parting of ways at the end of this season, potentially allowing Sainz to slot back into his old seat alongside Leclerc.
He said: “When Hamilton said [things are going on behind the scenes], I’m not sure what that meant.
“One way of reading it is that there has been talk already about changing the driver.
“Is that something that’s already been spoken about?
“Maybe it’s been mentioned if things don’t get better, you need to get yourself in a position where you’ve got the next driver ready for next year.
“Maybe they [Hamilton and Ferrari] are both saying that if it doesn’t work, the time is here, the time has come [to part ways].
“I don’t think it would be [Max] Verstappen [chosen to replace Hamilton]. It could be one of the younger drivers, I guess.
“But I saw a little interview with Carlos Sainz and when asked if he would go back to Ferrari, he replied: ‘Yeah, maybe!’
“Carlos was doing an absolutely brilliant job and was really keeping Charles under control.
“He’s still young. He’s still doing a good job, even if he’s struggling with Williams a bit.
“But we know how good he was when he was at Ferrari.”
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