Carlos Sainz Reveals Ferrari Past A Key Topic Of Interest At Williams

Saajan Jogia | Feb 18, 2025

Nov 23, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Scuderia Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz (55) celebrates after placing third in the Las Vegas Grand Prix at Las Vegas Circuit. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Williams driver Carlos Sainz has shared that his Ferrari past is a major point of interest for his new team as they go into 2025 with enthusiasm. He acknowledged the squad's eagerness to learn from his experience, noting that meetings frequently extend beyond schedule as team members are keen to hear his insights.

Sainz confirmed his 2025 move to Williams last year after Ferrari signed seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton in a bombshell announcement. While he explored opportunities with top teams like Red Bull and Mercedes, he was ultimately won over by Williams team principal James Vowles' long-term vision. This convinced Sainz to commit to the team on a multi-year deal.

After four years with the Scuderia, Sainz brings invaluable knowledge to Williams' Grove headquarters, insights that could be instrumental in the team's pursuit of success in Formula 1. Given that Ferrari fell just 14 points short of McLaren in last year’s Constructors' Championship, Sainz's experience and approach could provide Williams with the winning mindset needed to contend for top honors.

According to the 30-year-old driver, Williams is making the most of every opportunity to extract information from him about Ferrari, which could benefit the team in the upcoming season. Speaking to the media, including Sports Illustrated, he said:

“I have a lot of things that I can talk about from my past, previous life.

“What’s been very important to me, and what I like from this team, is that they’re extremely excited to hear me, to listen and they’re asking a lot of questions.

“In every meeting that I’m in, everyone is feeling free also to ask these questions, and these meetings are going on for long periods of time.

“In all the meetings, we are exceeding the planned time of one hour that that meeting should take.”

Sainz is happy with how eagerly Williams listens to his insights, fully focused on building a race-winning future. He acknowledged that the team takes his feedback seriously and acts on it immediately to enhance its competitive form. At the same time, he noted that his teammate, Alex Albon, has been candid about Williams' title contenders from the 2023 and 2024 seasons, hinting at an open environment where ideas are freely exchanged. He added:

“I see motivation, I see will, I see excitement, I see people that are just willing to make that process as quick as possible and see what we can get from my inside info, to make this thing competitive.

“Without going into the detail of technically what I can bring, because it’s too much of a technical question, I feel everything that I’ve said, it’s been applied also, and I think it could have an impact soon.

“Also very important, I think Alex is being extremely open with me about the secrets of the 2024 car, the 2023 [car], where we were coming from.

“This is helping to put both feedbacks together and try to find the right direction to follow.”