As the F1 paddock buzzes with speculation about Max Verstappen’s future and a potential move to Mercedes, Carlos Sainz is keeping his eyes firmly on the road ahead with Williams.
The Spanish driver, in his first season with the Grove-based team, brushed off talk of a Red Bull seat opening up, reaffirming his loyalty to Williams for the next two years – and potentially beyond.
Speaking ahead of this weekend’s British Grand Prix, Sainz made it clear he’s all in for the team’s ambitious journey.
“I think, first of all, [the] things you’re commenting on, [at] the moment, it looks like it’s rumours,” he said, addressing the current conjecture. “I don’t know how much of a truth is going on that end of things.
“Williams knows that it has my commitment and for the next two years and beyond, if the situation allows.”
“I believe the trajectory we’re on, and yeah, I am very confident with the choice I made.”
Sainz’s comments come amid a challenging maiden season with Williams. In Austria last weekend, the Spaniard faced a double blow when his FW47 was stuck in first gear at the start, and later a brake fire forced him out of the race.
Meanwhile, his teammate Alex Albon managed to progress into the top ten claim before retiring due to technical issues. Although Williams currently sits fifth in the Constructors’ Championship with a solid gap to the midfield, Albon has outscored Sainz 42 to 13 points this year.
Yet, the four-time Grand Prix winner remains unfazed, expressing confidence in Williams’ upward trajectory and dismissing a possible move to Red Bull, the team that passed on him last season when Ferrari signed Lewis Hamilton.
Despite the ups and downs, Sainz remains upbeat about Williams’ prospects.
“Yeah, I think for me the number one thing has always been performance and the performance is there,” he insisted.
“I see good things coming and this year’s car performance, if anything, has exceeded my expectations of what I thought Williams could deliver for 2025.”
“I insist [that] if we would be putting things together now, I think we could be, both drivers, P8, P9 or P7, P8 in the Drivers’ Championship and pulling away. But we are not ready yet to execute weekends in that manner.”
Acknowledging the frustrations of the current campaign, he remains hopeful on his and his team’s future.
“Even if now at the present time everything looks extremely frustrating and difficult to handle, it’s been 12 races where obviously there’s been a lot of ups and downs,” he said.
“But I’m confident on the trajectory we’re on and where we’re heading.”
With those words, Sainz put to rest any doubts about his future, confirming he is fully committed to helping Williams climb the Formula 1 order in the coming seasons.
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