Carlos Sainz at Williams, with a multi-year contract that Grove swear has no exit clause in the event of a call from a top team, is the news of the week and not only because Formula 1 has begun to observe the period of inactivity imposed by the summer break.
The Madrid-born driver was the most valuable piece left on the market after the announcement of Lewis Hamilton’s arrival in Maranello, Charles Leclerc’s new teammate starting in 2025.
Mercedes and Red Bull have waited a long time before making their drivers official for next season (Mercedes has yet to complete its driver lineup), yet, despite Sainz being on the market, they have taken different paths. And this has helped Williams to reach their goal despite it seeming like a fantasy transfer hypothesis on paper.
“I’m surprised that Red Bull and Mercedes didn’t think of Carlos. Because I consider Carlos one of the four best drivers and, at times, even the number 2 on the grid,” James Vowles, Williams team principal, immediately specified, speaking of Sainz.
Carlos Sainz, Scuderia Ferrari
Photo by: Glenn Dunbar / Motorsport Images
“Why wouldn’t someone want him in their team? My view of things is that the teams are getting closer and closer. So the marginal difference that a driver can make, and I don’t just mean in terms of performance, is very important. Look at Carlos and look at all the teams he’s been in. They’ve all improved significantly. And I understand why after spending the last 9 months talking to him every week, if not every day. I think my partner has also questioned our relationship… But what I’ve understood about Carlos is that he’s a performance machine.”
“He will do absolutely everything in his power to transform not only himself, but also the team around him. And that is a very strong thing. He is worth more than how much and how he can drive a car. He is capable of moving the team forward to the same extent. So when you are in the position of Red Bull, with a Constructors’ Championship at stake, it is always a difficult decision. But yes, I would have wanted Carlos alongside Max.”
“If you are at Mercedes, it is a difficult choice, but they have oscillated between not being competitive, in which case it makes sense to invest in the future, and being very competitive and now it is more difficult to decide whether to invest in known or unknown entities. But certainly Mercedes has much more information than I do. It is more than likely that they are very sure of the direction they are going to take, whether it is Verstappen or Antonelli I do not know. But they are not fools. They have made this decision sensibly.”
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