Carlos Sainz is already having a huge impact on Williams ahead of the 2025 season.
The Spaniard has joined the Grove-based outfit on a multi-year deal following his exit from Ferrari. The signing marks a real coup for Williams as Sainz partners with Alex Albon.
The two drivers create a strong line-up for the team with experience, multiple points finishes and race wins and podiums from their latest recruit, Sainz and Albon have adapted the nickname ‘Carbono’ as the former hopes it will strike a chord with fans.
Williams have brought in Sainz for the long-term as they look to improve their fortunes on track. The Grove-based outfit managed just 17 points in 2024 through Albon, Logan Sargeant and Franco Colapinto.
| Position | Constructors’ Standings | Points |
| 1 | 666 | |
| 2 | 652 | |
| 3 | 589 | |
| 4 | 468 | |
| 5 | 94 | |
| 6 | 65 | |
| 7 | 58 | |
| 8 | 46 | |
| 9 | 17 | |
| 10 | 4 |
Team boss James Vowles has made significant improvements off the track to build the organisation for future success. But that will not come immediately.
That is where Sainz comes in as he brings a winning mentality from his time at Ferrari. And the 30-year-old is looking to implement some of that at Williams.
Carlos Sainz wants Williams to copy Ferrari’s obsession with chasing the extra ‘tenth’ or ‘hundredth’ of a second
The Spaniard’s impact on his new team has already been clear to see. Sainz has impressed Williams engineers through his work on the simulator and provided detailed feedback to the garage after the post-season test in Abu Dhabi last year.
Sainz is looking to motivate Williams to find that extra tenth of a second to compete further up the field. Speaking at the factory via the team’s YouTube channel, the 30-year-old outlined that this is what Ferrari are ‘obsessed’ with and wants to see this implemented in Grove.
“I can tell you that a Formula 1 team nowadays at the level that Ferrari is running, there is some obsession by every single individual right there right now going for the last tenth, hundredth of a second”, he said.
“And that’s a team that is struggling to beat other teams like McLaren, Mercedes or Red Bull. So the level at the front of the field right now is extremely high.
“That 1,200 people that work in Ferrari, I don’t know exactly the number in Williams, you can tell they have the passion for winning, but they are obsessed with a tenth of a second.
“They’re obsessed with a hundredth of a second, obsessed with the minimal detail of every single piece of the car.
“So, from here I want to motivate you all, every single individual here that that last tenth will make the difference.
“If you adopt all these milliseconds, trust me it will pay off on track”.
The ‘strange’ thing Williams did with Carlos Sainz in testing at Barcelona
Sainz has got back behind the wheel of Williams machinery in TPC tests this week in Barcelona. Drivers can run up to 1,000km in a maximum of four days in old machinery.
The Spaniard drove the FW45 at the home of the Spanish GP as preparations ramped up for 2025. But Sainz ran with the 2023 spec steering wheel – a strange decision from Williams given he will not be using it this season.
Nevertheless, the 30-year-old still has plenty of time to get accustomed to the 2025 wheel and setup before pre-season testing kicks off in Bahrain later in February and the first race of the season in Australia in March.
Sainz is ‘very motivated’ behind the scenes after seeing the progress Williams are making on hs 2025 car. The Spaniard will be hoping to make an impression on track against his teammate Albon and bring the team back to a competitive level.
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