Fred Vasseur Reveals Real Reason Behind Early Carlos Sainz Exit Announcement

Saajan Jogia | Aug 17, 2024

Jun 7, 2024; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Ferrari driver driver Carlos Sainz (ESP) in the pit lane during the practice session at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports / Eric Bolte-USA TODAY Sports

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur has revealed the real reason behind letting Carlos Sainz know about his 2025 Ferrari exit well in advance. The team boss anticipated the intense media attention that would follow and chose to inform Sainz early, allowing him to mentally prepare and stay focused on his performance.

With barely a month to go before the start of the 2024 season, Lewis Hamilton shook the world of Formula 1 by announcing his Mercedes exit after racing for 11 years with the team, to join Ferrari for the 2025 season. Ferrari, who had broken the news to Sainz a few weeks before the announcement, also acknowledged the big move.

After a difficult journey with Mercedes in the ground effect era that started in 2022, Hamilton went through two winless seasons until recently, where he won two races at Silverstone and Spa-Francorchamps. The 39-year-old driver, hoping to secure his eighth championship title, signed with Ferrari, a team that displayed great fighting power in the 2023 season that was dominated by Red Bull.

Sainz, who was given ample time to prepare for the heightened media scrutiny and explore potential team options, effectively used the pre-season period to maintain his calm and composure throughout the year. This early preparation allowed him to navigate the pressures with a focused mindset, ensuring his performance remained steady amid the growing attention.

As the season unfolded, the Spaniard was linked to several teams for a 2025 seat, including Alpine, Mercedes, Red Bull, Sauber/Audi, and Williams. After six months of speculation, Sainz finally signed with Williams. Vasseur, who anticipated Sainz's position in February, wanted him to focus on his last season with Ferrari. Explaining the reason for the early notification to Sainz, he told RacingNews365.com:

"If you have a look at the first part of the season, considering the fact that he also missed Jeddah, he was doing very well.

"He's very professional, very consistent, and it was a part of my motivation at the beginning [of the year] to do the announcement quite early to have him focused.

"I knew that at some stage he would have to sign somewhere and this could be a distraction, but it was much better to anticipate it.

"But honestly, the approach of Carlos is mega professional, and he was mega professional from day one this season, as he was last year - I can compare the two on his behavior."

Vasseur praised Sainz, dismissing concerns that off-track distractions affected his performance. The 29-year-old driver started the season strong, securing a podium in the opener and winning the Australian Grand Prix just weeks after recovering from appendicitis.

He followed up with another third-place finish in Japan and consistently scored points, including two more podiums. As media attention on his future grew leading up to the summer break, Vasseur emphasized that Sainz's focus remained undeterred. He added:

"The last couple of weeks [prior to the summer break], for sure [the media] had more questions than before and it's a kind of distraction.

"But if you have a look [in qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix], he did a mega job [in] Q1 [and] Q2.

"It's only the last lap of Q3 that he made a mistake on Turn 1. You don't have to draw a conclusion on the fact that he braked just five meters too late, it's not a consequence of something - he was in front of Charles [Leclerc] [in Q1 [and] Q2."