Carlos Sainz is considering a possible future at Williams. This is not a rumor, but a real negotiation which the Spaniard’s manager is carrying out as an alternative to the Audi option. At first glance, the Sainz-Williams pairing may be surprising, but a deeper analysis reveals a somewhat different scenario.
The latest rumors have confirmed that for Sainz (barring an unexpected turn) the doors of Mercedes and Red Bull are closed, a situation that deprives the Spaniard of getting the opportunity to have a seat in a team at the front of the grid, at least in 2025.
The scenario then is very clear: Alpine, Haas, Williams and Sauber (that is, Audi) continue to move in the market. Looking ahead to next season, signing for Williams does not mean aspiring for less than what would be potentially possible at Sauber. On the contrary, if the current trend is followed (in 2025 single-seaters should be evolutions of current cars), the opposite is most likely.
Evidently, the election should also be read in code 2026, since no team (much less Sainz) is looking for contracts for only one year. In two seasons everyone will be starting from a blank page and obviously this will also be the case for Audi and Williams. In the case of the German team there will be the long-awaited debut of the first power unit designed and built independently, while Williams will depend largely on the Mercedes project.
If Brixworth can do a job that lives up to Toto Wolff’s high expectations, Williams will also benefit from it, as happened in 2014, when the British team finished third in the constructors’ championship when hybrid power units debuted.
So, there will then be a large driver market in 2026, as many of the contracts signed during this season will expire, and Sainz (who will be 32 years old) will be able to rethink his future. This is, and will be, an important step for him, who will not want to be caught off guard as has happened to him this campaign. That is to say, his election for the next two years should be read as the best possible commitment to return to an important place when the market doors open again.
Sainz will not let much more time pass to make his decision, It will be Audi or Williams. Of course, the Grove team has also considered alternative options to the Madrid native, with Valtteri Bottas at the head of the ‘plan B’ list.
Williams F1 Team Motorhome
Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
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