Carlos Sainz’s arrival at Williams isn’t just a driver swap – it’s a veritable knowledge transfer mission according to the former Ferrari charger, and his new colleagues are all in.
Sainz’s journey in F1 has taken him across borders and cultures, from Toro Rosso’s debut stage in 2015 to the scarlet heart of Ferrari.
Now, as he dons the blue of Williams for 2025, the Spaniard finds himself at the center of a team buzzing with anticipation.
Fresh off his stint at Maranello, Sainz has stepped into a squad eager to tap into his wealth of experience – and he’s relishing the chance to help steer Williams toward a brighter future.
At last week’s F1 75 event in London, Sainz opened up about the infectious enthusiasm he’s encountered and how his Ferrari know-how is already sparking a collaborative push at Grove.
A Team Keen to Learn
“Obviously, I have a lot of things that I can talk about from my previous life and what has been very important to me and what I like from this team is that they are extremely excited to hear me, to listen and they are asking a lot of questions in every meeting that I’m in,” Sainz told the media, quoted by Motorsport Week.
The eagerness is palpable, with team members diving deep into his Ferrari tenure.
“Everyone is feeling free also to ask these questions and these meetings are going on for long periods of time and in all the meetings we are exceeding the planned time of one hour that the meeting should take.”
That extra time speaks volumes. Sainz sees it as a sign of a squad hungry to climb the grid. But beyond his colleagues picking his brain, his insights aren’t just being heard – they’re being acted upon.
“So 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,” he said.
“I feel everything that I’ve said is being applied also and I think it could have an impact soon.”
Bridging Past and Present
Sainz isn’t alone in this effort. His teammate, Alex Albon, has welcomed him with open arms – and especially with open data.
“And also very important, I think Alex has been extremely open with me about the secrets of the 2024 car, the 2023 car, where we were coming from and this is helping to put both feedbacks together and try to find the right direction to follow,” Sainz noted.
This two-way exchange – Sainz’s Ferrari expertise meeting Albon’s Williams intel – is laying the groundwork for a unified push. It’s a partnership that could fast-track the team’s development, blending lessons from two distinct F1 worlds to carve a path forward.
At Home in Blue
For Sainz, Williams marks his fifth F1 team in a decade – a whirlwind tour of the sport’s diversity amid a nomadic career.
“I like blue, first of all,” he said with a smile ahead of the F1 75 launch. “It’s an easier colour to combine with other things.
Apart from that, that’s me doing 50% of the teams in Formula 1 in 10 years, so that’s a different team every two years.
“I don’t know if it’s a good or a bad thing, but it definitely has given me a lot of experience and a lot of information about how different teams work and different organisations can work in different cultures.”
However, his latest move – from Ferrari’s Italian flair to Williams’ British roots – is his biggest change yet.
“Definitely this is the biggest switch, going from an Italian-based team back to a British-based team,” he acknowledged.
“It’s definitely going to be a big change again, but nothing that I’m not used to, nothing that I haven’t seen before and obviously a good challenge that I’m excited for and keen to enjoy and keen to fast-track that process of adaptation as much as possible because I feel good, I feel at home, which is an important thing.”
That sense of belonging, paired with a team eager to absorb his insights, sets the stage for a promising chapter.
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