The speculation around Carlos Sainz‘s F1 future has been going on for multiple months now. Audi and Alpine were in contention of signing the Spaniard before the latest was revealed. According to reports, Sainz has signed a deal with Williams worth $10.8 Million. The deal reportedly has the clauses requested by Sainz.
“Sainz has signed a one-year contract with the traditional British team with options for an extension” reported F1-insider.com. There are special clauses in the contract that allow the Spaniard to leave if an opportunity from Red Bull or Mercedes arrives during the 2025 season, or even before he starts his tenure at Williams.
not will buxton having receipts of carlos sainz sr. and carlos oñoro heading into the williams facility pic.twitter.com/YBuK528K8j
— gen (@forsainz) July 26, 2024
Carlos Sainz Sr. and Carlos Onoro, the father and manager of the Spaniard were spotted entering the Williams Motorhome at the Belgium GP. The two supposedly had a meeting with James Vowles to finalize the details of the contract. The exit clause was believed to be the only holdup and why Sainz wasn’t signing with Williams.
Alpine stuck their foot in the door after Flavio Briatore’s appointment. Alpine was believed to be the only team offering an exit clause to Sainz. However, the Spaniard demanded the team to get a Mercedes engine deal first. With Williams, Sainz has the exit clause as well as the Mercedes engine.
The Spaniard was linked to teams like Red Bull and Mercedes earlier this season. However, as months went by, the hopes of a big seat started fading. Regardless, Toto Wolff has still kept the door open for Sainz in case Antonelli isn’t ready to make the F1 jump.
Carlos Sainz Stays Mum About His F1 Future
Kevin Magnussen suggested about a month ago that Sainz has been the cork stopping other drivers from confirming. Teams were frustrated by the delay and started looking for other options. Valtteri Bottas reportedly had a meeting with James Vowles.
When asked about where his future lies or any update on the same, Carlos Sainz, during the Belgium GP press conference said, “I don’t know. It’s as simple as that. I don’t know if it will be before or after the summer break. I don’t know.”
carlos sainz via https://t.co/9Al2jTgFy1 talking about his future in formula one.
“ [..] but this is life, it wasn’t my decision, but i like to think that the future could reserve me something even better”
— giorgia ⁵⁵ (@sopietv) April 18, 2024
Haas has already confirmed its lineup with Bearman and Ocon. The only teams left to confirm the driver pairings are the ones linked to Sainz-Sauber, Williams, Alpine, and Mercedes. Toto Wolff isn’t going to make an announcement anytime soon.
If Sainz has indeed signed with Williams, Sauber, and Alpine can start looking elsewhere for a driver.
