When Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari was announced in February of last year, most of the attention was on the seven-time world champion. Many forgot about the driver who was essentially being kicked out of his seat for 2025.
It was rather brutal for Carlos Sainz Jr. to know his fate for the following season before the current one had even begun. There was an extensive processing period for the Spanish driver, as his farewell season with Ferrari was still over a month away from officially beginning.
Ultimately, it instantly made Sainz the biggest name in the driver market. Over the next few months, there were rumors connecting him to almost all of the other nine teams on the grid for 2025.
After a very long saga, with a new rumor seemingly spreading through the paddock every week, the 30-year-old shocked the world with a move to Williams on a multi-year deal. A lot of people began questioning why the Spaniard moved to a team that has not even been able to be in the midfield since the mid-2010s days of Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas.
Success at Williams gives Sainz a much better look than initially anticipated
Sainz’s move to Williams has been labeled as “career suicide”, similar to Lewis Hamilton’s move to Mercedes from McLaren in 2013.
Though a driver lineup of Sainz and Alex Albon makes it arguably the fifth best on the grid, the R&D aspect of the team is what will essentially determine their success. At the moment, there is quite a lot of optimism heading into the next era of regulations, which is due to begin in 2026.
Failure has already effectively been imposed on Sainz, and avoiding it will catch the attention of all who watch. Sainz’s experience will be very valuable to the team, and being credited with being a major factor in bringing Williams back to their former glory would earn him a badge of honor forever.
Sainz is also set to join an exclusive group of drivers to race for both McLaren and Williams, including Alain Prost, Ayrton Senna, Keke Rosberg, Juan Pablo Montoya, and Jenson Button. He is also set to become just the second driver ever to drive for McLaren, Ferrari, and Williams, joining Prost.
Under the general expectation that Williams make massive improvements in 2026, this could easily become one of the most under-appreciated driver moves in Formula 1 history. Additionally, making waves with Williams can allow Sainz to return to a top team, as hardly any drivers have a clear future with their current teams beyond the next two seasons.