Williams has confirmed that Carlos Sainz will be driving for them starting from the 2025 season, as he will be partnering Alexander Albon.
Back at the start of the year, when Ferrari announced that Lewis Hamilton would join the Italian team in 2025, many wondered where Sainz would end up. At the time, the Spaniard had different options, like Mercedes, Aston Martin, or even Red Bull.
As the season went underway and time passed, more and more doors started to close for the Ferrari driver. Red Bull confirmed Sergio Perez and Mercedes seems ready to bet on the young Italian driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli. Meanwhile, Aston Martin decided to confirm both Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll.
Even though Mercedes’ decision hasn’t been confirmed yet, what Toto Wolff said and the fact that the FIA lowered the super license age are all indicators that Antonelli could be the first option for the Brackley-based outfit.
Another team that seemed a candidate for signing Sainz was Sauber, which will become Audi in 2026. That was because the Spaniard’s father had links with the German manufacturer. However, that option never became reality.
The only alternatives remaining were Williams and Alpine, to which Sainz was linked a few weeks ago. The rumors came out of the blue, but considering that there weren’t any more vacant seats, those were Sainz’s only options to remain in Formula 1.
Williams had a decent season in 2023, considering the struggles the team had in the last few seasons. 2024 has been a bit more difficult so far, but adding such a talented and intelligent driver as Sainz might help the British outfit to fight back, just like McLaren did back in 2019.
Finally, right at the start of the summer break, the British outfit announced the Spaniard as their future driver.
“He’s a race-winning driver that last year against all odds beat Max [Verstappen] in Singapore with a brilliant drive, and that’s not the first time. He’s intelligent how he approaches things, logical, incredibly quick,” said Williams’ team principal James Vowles.
“The number one target is Carlos,” added Vowles a few months ago when asked if he had any drivers in mind for Williams’ future.