Carlos Sainz was given an emotional send-off by Ferrari as he prepares for his transfer to Williams forward of the 2025 System 1 season.
The Spanish driver has spent the final 4 seasons alongside Charles Leclerc on the Italian crew and might be changed by seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton for the upcoming 12 months.
In his remaining season with the Maranello crew, Carlos Sainz managed to safe two race wins, together with a exceptional victory on the Australian Grand Prix, simply weeks after recovering from appendicitis surgical procedure. Nonetheless, he now faces a brand new problem with Williams as he joins forces with Alex Albon to assist return the crew to prominence, aiming to finish a 20-year championship drought. Lando Norris believes Carlos Sainz’s addition will elevate Williams right into a high contender, a view supported by Carlos Sainz’s confirmed potential to guide each McLaren and Ferrari towards the entrance of the grid lately.
Whereas rapid success within the Constructors’ Championship could also be out of attain, there’s loads of potential for long-term progress on the Grove-based crew.
Carlos Sainz’s Father Spins Ferrari F1 Automotive Throughout Farewell Laps
In accordance with former Haas crew principal Guenther Steiner, Williams has secured a “lottery win” by signing Carlos Sainz, whose race-winning expertise and deep information of automotive improvement might be invaluable for a crew working to enhance within the midfield.
Nonetheless, the journey won’t be simple. New crew principal James Vowles has acknowledged that the 2025 season will focus extra on studying and improvement than rapid outcomes, with 2026 being seen because the 12 months to make important strides.
As a part of his farewell from Ferrari, Carlos Sainz and his father got the chance to drive two SF-75 vehicles across the legendary Fiorano check monitor. Ferrari’s press launch famous an amusing second throughout the farewell laps when Carlos Sainz’s father spun the automotive, however he shortly regained management and continued to finish laps with robust tempo: “Though he spun the automotive, Senior quickly discovered his rhythm, finishing a number of runs doing constant lap occasions. At mid-morning, his son additionally went out on monitor, reacquainting himself with the automotive with which he took his maiden System 1 win on the 2022 British Grand Prix at Silverstone.” – Ferrari’s press launch revealed.
Is Lewis Hamilton a Stronger Possibility for Ferrari Than Carlos Sainz?
Ferrari is at the moment adopting a “win now” mentality, having lastly developed a automotive able to competing persistently for the championship throughout a variety of circuits.
Traditionally, Ferrari has confronted challenges with automotive improvement because the season progresses, however they seem to have overcome this hurdle, having taken the Constructors’ Championship battle all the way down to the wire at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix this 12 months.
Whereas they weren’t as shut within the Drivers’ Championship combat, the addition of Mercedes’ star drivers, together with Lewis Hamilton, is predicted to strengthen their possibilities on this space. Even Crimson Bull’s Helmut Marko has praised Lewis Hamilton as “world-class,” acknowledging that the British driver has demonstrated for almost 20 years his potential to win and relentlessly problem his rivals.
Constructing a profitable partnership will take time, and it’ll depend upon the Maranello crew discovering a setup that fits Lewis Hamilton’s driving model. Nonetheless, if they’re able to unlock that potential, it may propel the crew to new heights.
This potential for achievement is probably going a key purpose why the seven-time System 1 world champion selected the Italian aspect, and it might clarify why the crew believes their possibilities of profitable are higher with him onboard in comparison with Carlos Sainz.