Carlos Sainz will drive for Williams alongside Alexander Albon in the 2025 Formula 1 season – He has lost his place in a top team…
“I have made my peace with it, but sometimes it still hurts,” Carlos Sainz tells Sky about his move from top team Ferrari to mid-field team Williams. To this day, the Spaniard cannot understand why no top team has taken him on. But it is precisely to these doubters that he now wants to prove himself and achieve strong results with Williams, even if it will take the team a few more years to reach the top of Formula 1.
“Of course, we all have an ego and I also have a driver’s ego,” says Sainz, explaining his personal situation in the top tier. ”I didn’t understand it back then and still don’t understand some people’s decisions today. At the same time, the challenge for me has become even greater, which makes it even more appealing for me to be at Williams.”
Sainz does not want to bury his head in the sand. On the contrary, he wants to prove to his critics what he is made of. Williams has a grand plan for the coming years: to return to its former glory and regularly fight for podium places again. Sainz is expected to play an important role in James Vowles’ team. That’s why the racing team fought over the Spaniard.
Sainz wants to lead Williams
“Williams has invested in me and supported me from the beginning,” says Sainz. “It started a year ago and immediately appealed to me. I said to myself, ‘I want to give people back what they gave me. I want to repay the trust. I can’t wait to build something big with the team.”
Sainz is up against Alexander Albon internally, who went through the Red Bull school and ended up back in Formula 1 via a few detours – at Williams, of all teams. The new owner Dorilton is convinced by the line-up and wants to go to the top of Formula 1. To do that, however, the infrastructure and development of the car must be raised to a new level in the shortest possible time.
Sainz against Albon, that sounds like a promising duel at Williams and Albon is already keen to measure himself against the Spaniard. In the Pirelli podcast, he says: “You can look at it two ways: as a threat or as a challenge. I definitely see it as a challenge. Albon now has a real F1 heavyweight to measure himself against and he’s ready to take on that challenge.”
Albon rises to the challenge
“This is how I can show people what I can do,” Albon continued. “It’s good for me.” Furthermore, the two have always got on well with their teammates in their careers. So the off-track dynamic could be a very positive one for both the team and the fans. On the track, however, the two are fierce rivals, each wanting to beat their teammate.
In Sainz and Albon, Williams has signed two drivers who are known as team players in the paddock. This could help the team to make the rapid progress needed to remain competitive in Formula 1. “I’ve always enjoyed having strong teammates and I think it will be great working with Alex next year. With my experience at Ferrari, I’m sure I can help Williams improve.”
The ingredients are promising: two fast drivers, two team players with ambition and experience, and an ambitious team that has recognized its own weaknesses and is working to overcome them. Sainz vs. Albon could be a real classic, on and off the track, if the chemistry between the two is right.