Carlos Sainz admitted it “hurt at the time” to not land a
driver with a front-running team after it was confirmed he will be leaving
Ferrari.
Red Bull and Mercedes opted to renew with Sergio Perez
and sign rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli respectively, and while Sainz hopes
in time to bring Williams back up the field alongside Alex Albon, he has now
“come to peace” with his position for 2025 onwards.
Carlos Sainz ‘hurt at the time’ when front-running doors
closed for F1 2025
Sainz became a free agent for a significant portion of
the season when it was announced Lewis Hamilton would be heading to Ferrari
next year, with the Spanish driver previously stating he held negotiations with
“every team” at different times.
He eventually chose Williams as his next destination on
an extended multi-year contract, with the Grove-based team looking to the F1
2026 regulations as a reset for a jump forward in competitiveness.
But with more immediately competitive seats having been
available in the short-term, the four-time Grand Prix winner admitted he
“couldn’t understand” being looked past, though he is now ready for his next
step with Williams.
When it was put to Sainz by Sky F1 that
opportunities to drive for Red Bull and Mercedes saw the ‘doors close pretty
quickly’ earlier this year, the 30-year-old admitted that was a blow to his
“driver ego” at that point.
“I’ve definitely come to peace, and I am a true believer
that if I’m not going there, it’s because life just doesn’t want me to be there
– there’s something else coming after that, that will actually turn out to be
good,” Sainz said.
“It hurt at the time, we all have egos, and I have a driver
ego, and I couldn’t understand it at the time.
“I still personally cannot understand certain choices that
people have done, but at the same time, it creates even more of a challenge in
me, and it even makes me more excited for Williams.
“Williams is the one that has invested in me, that have backed me up from the beginning, the ones that came to me a full year ago, and that actually makes me super excited.
