James Vowles revealed that he had approached Carlos Sainz about a Williams move at last year’s Abu Dhabi GP itself. With Sainz’s stellar performances in the second half of last season, it made sense why Vowles wanted him. Although, the 45-year-old mentioned that he first witnessed the Spaniard’s talent during his rookie year.
“I had an eye on him before that”, said Vowles on the F1 Nation podcast when asked if the Singapore GP win in 2023 was the race that triggered the move to approach Sainz. He added, “I believe Carlos has improved every year. You go back to his history, he’s beaten Lando, he’s beaten Charles, he’s beaten, at times Max.”
Recalling the first time when Sainz caught Vowles’ eye, the Williams boss said, “I remember way back in the days when he was at Toro Rosso with Max, I went, ‘ Max is quick but don’t underestimate the other chap next to him. I’m really impressed by how he’s holding up’. It all started there. That was the first time I watched him”.
Sainz and Verstappen were teammates in their rookie season in 2015. Both had great talent but Sainz’s Red Bull chances were hampered by Verstappen’s outright skill. Regardless, the Spaniard kept improving on his skill and is amongst the best drivers on the grid currently — someone who can challenge Verstappen in an equal car.
Vowles was impressed with how Sainz helped McLaren and Ferrari improve during his tenure with the team. The Williams boss wanted a similar leader to motivate the team and help build a championship-winning outfit again.
Vowles describes Sainz’s negotiations as “dating”
Vowles and Sainz went back and forth for over eight months before signing the Williams contract. It all started in Abu Dhabi and kicked off after Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton announcement. Vowles describes the progressive nature of it as dating.
“It’s why I described it as dating. So, we had our first coffee, lovely date. Then light texting, as you do, a little bit of flirting, as you do. Then, really, the conversation after Lewis [Ferrari announcement] happened, kicked off more in earnest and became more and more intense month by month,” said Vowles on the F1 Nation podcast.
Now that the dating phase is over and the two parties decided to get married, it’s time for both Sainz and Williams to achieve their goal — getting back to the top and winning the championship.
While it may take a while for the Grove outfit, the #55 driver is keen on doing his level-best to propel Williams further up the pecking order and that’s what Vowles expects.
