The watching world learned what the 2024 season meant for Carlos Sainz Jnr when Ferrari made its bombshell announcement that he would lose his seat to Lewis Hamilton at the end of the year. Already a multiple race winner, Sainz was now on the driver market.
Sainz made a strong start to this crucial year. He started the season on the podium with only the dominant Red Bulls ahead of him. After an appendectomy forced him to miss round two, Sainz returned in style to win the Australian Grand Prix. In Japan he again completed the podium behind the Red Bull drivers.He wasn’t able to sustain that form against a team mate of Charles Leclerc’s quality. Sainz followed Leclerc home in Shanghai, Miami (where he was penalised for colliding with Oscar Piastri) and Imola. While Leclerc won in Monaco, Sainz was incredibly fortunate to reach the podium, as the red flag on the first lap erased the consequences of another tangle with Piastri (he enjoyed a similar get-out-of-jail-free card after crashing in qualifying at Shanghai).
At times it felt like the pressure of the driver market situation was taking a toll on Sainz, particularly in his eagerness to put one over Leclerc. The pair had a few run-ins over the course of the year, notably in Spain and Las Vegas, though in the latter case Ferrari’s management of their drivers was questionable.
Carlos Sainz Jnr
| Best | Worst | |
|---|---|---|
| GP start | 1 | 20 |
| GP finish | 1 (x2) | 18 |
| Points | 290 | |
During the middle part of the season, when Ferrari briefly lost their way with the SF-24, Leclerc usually showed Sainz the way. However Sainz picked up an opportunistic third place in Austria and showed great feel for the changing conditions at Silverstone. The same could not be said for his performances in the rain-hit races in Canada and Brazil, which were easily his weakest weekends of the year.
Sainz ended the season in better shape. He should have joined Leclerc on the podium in Baku where he went out in a late collision with Sergio Perez, then completed a Ferrari one-two in Austin. He grabbed his chance to take a stylish final win for Ferrari in Mexico, and pushed Lando Norris hard in the season finale as Ferrari fell short in their bid to beat McLaren to the constructors’ title.
It may be some time before Sainz will have a car that allows him to fight at the sharp end again. But his 2024 performance should leave no one in any doubt that he deserves one.
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Biggsy
29th January 2025, 12:27
I really think that Hamilton will be visibly slower compared to Charles than Carlos was.
Seeing him trail Russel in quali, and seeing how close Carlos was to Charles, I really don’t see Hamilton being closer the Charles than Carlos was.
And that won’t bode well, neither for him nor for the look of Ferrari’s management’s decision.
I’m not saying he will be bad, but he will be noticeably further away from Leclerc than Sainz was.
Craig
29th January 2025, 13:06
I don’t see where these conclusions come from. While we might have seen Hamilton struggle a few times last year when everything was fine he would easily match or beat Russell, who’s no slouch. The idea of “Leclerc will easily thwomp Hamilton” seems to come more from wishful thinking then any form of reality.
Gracie19
29th January 2025, 14:15
How often did he easily match or beat Russell?
Tony Mansell (@tonymansell)
29th January 2025, 15:35
Well, he said ‘ i really think so’ thats where it came from. Thin air basically
El Pollo Loco
29th January 2025, 16:59
While I disagree with his conclusion and think Lewis will be great, it’s pretty ironic that you two and many others here (not surprisingly, he is by far the most popular driver in the world after all) here regard any negative opinion of/prediction for Hamilton or even tangentially related as immediately ludicrous. But don’t seem to apply that framework to opinions on other subjects and drivers.
anon
29th January 2025, 21:40
Craig, I think that part of it comes from the fact that the popular perception of Leclerc is that he’s a qualifying specialist and has sometimes pulled out unexpectedly quick qualifying laps, which means that qualifying is seen as one of his greatest strengths.
That said, whilst Leclerc did edge out Sainz in qualifying, Leclerc wasn’t as dominant over Sainz in practice as seems to be popularly assumed. Leclerc did edge the qualifying battle 14-9 (17-12 if you include sprint qualifying sessions), but only Gasly and Ocon were more evenly balanced in terms of which one won the qualifying battle in terms of raw numbers.
In terms of average performance deficits over the course of the season, if you exclude the extreme outliers, Leclerc had, on average, an advantage over Sainz of only 0.05% on average qualifying time – the smallest average advantage in the entire field. Similarly, in terms of average qualifying position, Leclerc’s average grid slot for the season was 5.29, whilst Sainz’s was 5.71 – again, the smallest difference in average qualifying position on the grid.
Riccard
29th January 2025, 13:19
If Hamilton brings the same performance he did in 2024, then I agree he will be further behind Leclerc than Sainz was. However, Hamilton has often got fed up and performed poorly when he feels he can’t win, and it seems widely recognised that he spent the first and last thirds of last season in that kind of funk, so there is a chance he picks up and performs more strongly this time around.
If the Ferrari is the fastest car from the first race, I suspect we will see Hamilton’s focused side more often, and then he can compete with Leclerc.
David BR (@david-br)
29th January 2025, 14:13
Depends on whether the Ferrari suits Hamilton’s driving style more, if so, he’ll be faster than Leclerc over race distances. One laps are more unpredictable because a lot depends on set up direction and whether grid position is more important (at a track or to a driver) than race pace. I suspect Leclerc and Hamilton have a similar philosophy on set up, but Leclerc is inclined to push (risk) more over one lap.
An Sionnach
29th January 2025, 20:55
I don’t think Lewis should try that hard to outqualify Leclerc. Once he’s within a handful of positions, he’ll have time to pass him in the race. Russell had a strong year in qualifying, but Lewis often made up the difference (and sometimes more) in the race. If Lewis takes some of the pressure off himself he shouldn’t start outside the top ten.
Edvaldo
30th January 2025, 1:24
Mate, their decision already paid itself when their stock price skyrocketed a year ago at the time of the announcement.
If the Hamilton experience doesn’t happen to work there, at least it was a great business decision.
Sainz had four seasons to have the measure of Leclerc and only did it when the car wasn’t fighting for anything. It was more than enough time for them to decide on a different direction.
If Hamilton is no longer able to be the man, then they have Charles to do it. Charles who was faster than Carlos on the majority of their time together, so… they’re safe.
MacLeod (@macleod)
30th January 2025, 8:06
I noticed Lewis had really big problems with his brake points with this kind of car (groundeffect) We have to wait if Lewis can master the Ferrari brakes beter so he can use his skills on one of his strong points.
Rolfski (@rolfski)
29th January 2025, 12:38
The fight between Carlos and his new teammate Alex will be an interesting one to watch as Carlos usually adapts quite well to new teams. If that turns out to be the case then both can push Williams to places it probably doesn’t belong.
Riccard
29th January 2025, 13:21
I agree – and I’m looking forward to how Albon responds to that. There were a couple of times last season where he seemed to be feeling the pressure from Colapinto.
Sainz will pose a tougher challenge, but then everyone knows Sainz is a top driver, so Albon might be more comfortable in a close battle with Sainz (confirming they are equals) than he was being challenged by Colapinto (who was meant to be the rookie).
Frank
29th January 2025, 16:08
From all team mate battles in 2025, Sainz-Albon is perhaps the one where both drivers have the most to lose.
For both drivers, a defeat would put an end to their hopes of returning to the sharp end of the grid. In contrast, the winner will be top of the list for any team looking for a new driver.
In all other matchups including at Ferrari, there is one driver who has little to lose.
Frank
29th January 2025, 16:21
Maybe as a clarification:
– No one expects Lawson to beat Verstappen.
– Leclerc is under huge pressure to beat Hamilton who can always point to his age when explaining deficits.
– Alonso has the measure of Stroll
– Any gradual shift in performance between Norris and Piastri will not deny either another shot at mclaren.
– Rookies are not required to beat an established team mate. Just showing up decent is often enough to get a second year.
Not denying that competing at this level always brings expectations and pressure. They will all have to perform of course.
El Pollo Loco
29th January 2025, 17:04
I will be genuinely surprised if Alex’s stock isn’t further shattered by Carlos. I really, really like Alex, but from what we’ve seen from him and what my gut instinct tells me, he’s a firm step below your better journeyman type drivers like Ocon and Gasly. I was genuinely surprised when fans and media began linking with him possible drives at Mercedes, Red Bull and most insane of all, even Ferrari. I understood why he might be a good interim pick for RBR, but that’s not how most were looking at it.
An Sionnach
29th January 2025, 21:16
Sainz set a better time than Albon’s best qualifying time in his first test in Williams. Significantly faster. Colapinto hinted at it, but I think the Williams was a much better car last year than it appeared to be. Hopefully Sainz will be a regular points scorer this year.
El Pollo Loco
1st February 2025, 2:51
+1
I think that goes doubly for the 2023 car (being a lot faster than it looked).
Deerhunter
29th January 2025, 13:34
Leclerc and Sainz is probably one of the more interesting matchups, in the sense that it did no go the way I thought it would.
Given his time in Mclaren, I genuinely thought that Sainz would be the more reliable, consistent driver compared to the more peaky Leclerc, but it ends up being the complete opposite.
Sainz’ highs (Silverstone and Brazil in 2022, Monza and Singapore last year, Melbourne and Mexico this year) are extremely high, but the many, many amateurish driver errors are also impossible to overlook. It is then extremely disappointing that the one year he was starting to sand out those rough edges also ends up being his last year with Ferrari.
Still, I find Sainz in the Williams to be a hugely likable pairing, so fingers crossed that this project turned out well for all parties involved. It’s absurd for Maldonado’s admittedly brilliant win in 2012 to also remains Williams’ last
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
29th January 2025, 18:35
Well, I don’t think the car was ever that good after 2012, and that’s required to win, I remember the 2014 one being pretty good, but there was mercedes dominating, and after that williams has been a midfield or backmarker team, and occasions are very rare even for midfield teams, something needs to happen to take out all of the top cars, much like that win ocon got at renault.
David BR (@david-br)
29th January 2025, 14:15
It felt like one of Sainz’s best seasons, maybe his best, quick at a lot of tracks and feisty with it, including the skirmishes with Leclerc. Shame it wasn’t Ferrari who had the pace to compete for the title with Verstappen, I think it would have been a lot closer and a ton more interesting.
Christopher Rehn (@chrischrill)
29th January 2025, 14:42
I was definitely expecting Sainz to finish ahead of Russell, but Russell is likely to be P4 behind the top 3 of Max, Lando, and Charles.
Richard James
29th January 2025, 14:56
Do not forget he missed Saudi and the stupid move from Perez in Baku
BasCB (@bascb)
29th January 2025, 16:00
Yeah, I am somewhat baffled by having Russel ahead of Sainz.
The Dolphins
29th January 2025, 18:29
Likewise, I’d have thought the top 5 would be: 1 Max, 2 Charles, 3 Lando, 4 Sainz, 5 George
El Pollo Loco
29th January 2025, 17:10
I am not. Leclerc thoroughly outshined Sainz this season. And, for the first time, George out performed Lewis. Rightfully, George is going to get more credit for that feat than Sainz is going to get for being consistent in Leclerc’s shadow. Sainz also had a much better car than George.
For the record, I cannot stand George and really like Sainz who I think is a great driver and still expected and agree with this. Given that and all the above, I’m surprised anyone thought Sainz would be rated above Russell. Very few websites put Sainz above Russell in their rankings.
An Sionnach
29th January 2025, 21:33
I agree. I think the top five are the easy to pick, and I would also have Piastri as number six.
Leclerc improved a lot this year in the races. George also showed an improvement on Sundays. The good thing about this is that the pair of them have showed that they are capable of improving and they’re not going to continue to drive in circles in exactly the same fashion as they always have (Gasly?). It’s still a problem that Lewis was often faster than George on Sunday, and sometimes so much so that he could catch and even pass him. This may be a challenge for Leclerc. He is expected to beat Lewis in qualifying, so the pressure is on. If Lewis can consistently catch up to him from lower positions, that might not be great for his morale.
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
29th January 2025, 18:40
This is what I was expecting too, and the only surprise to me in the top 6.
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
29th January 2025, 18:41
Oh, but you put norris 2nd, it seems to me, I put him 3rd, much like the articles here will.
Tony Mansell (@tonymansell)
29th January 2025, 15:38
Not bad. Hamilton gets 7 mentions by commenters to Sainz’s 11. There’s not a team on the grid who’d take Sainz over Lewis but theres plenty on comments pages
EffWunFan (@cairnsfella)
30th January 2025, 0:03
@tonymansell
I know right.
And I have to admit that I was tempted to respond to the LeClerc / Hamilton coments myself, but resisted, however it I’m still contradicting myself a little when saying:-
I’m not so sure about that.
stefano (@alfa145)
29th January 2025, 16:28
too bad he went to Williams now that he’s peaking. But he might still land a winning Aston or something in a couple of years
MichaelN
29th January 2025, 17:32
He had a strong season, but it’s clear that Leclerc has an edge he is – finally, one might say – able to show consistently.
But Sainz gave Leclerc more of a run for his money than I suspect many expected, and it’s a shame to see him now go to Williams of all teams.
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
29th January 2025, 18:47
Indeed, should’ve gone to red bull if possible, but he waited a long time during the season, so I have to assume red bull didn’t want him, he would’ve been better than any of tsunoda\lawson\perez and probably much like old ricciardo.
MichaelN
29th January 2025, 20:19
He said in his recent F1 Beyond the Grid podcast appearance that Red Bull never reached out to him.
Even if that’s not entirely true – and perhaps just a friendly way to say that either or both had preconditions that were unacceptable to the other side – it seems clear that Red Bull was never a serious option. I think that’s unfortunate, but hey! It’s their money.
Edvaldo
29th January 2025, 17:37
Leclerc is the stronger driver and the driver Ferrari should keep from the two.
That said, Sainz left on a high note and did well enough for himself to recover from that very weak 2022 season and to land on something better than a Williams. A shame it was not to be with Red Bull or Mercedes.
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
29th January 2025, 18:49
True, a very bad 2022 season when his contract got extended early on, instead now a very good 2024 season after he was dropped, he is definitely worthy of a top car after such a season.
Bullfrog (@bullfrog)
29th January 2025, 20:45
Fair play to him, I never thought he’d win this many.
Can’t help rooting for Williams, the Nottingham Forest of F1, bringing back the glory days with their rabble of rejects.
BenHur
30th January 2025, 0:49
Shame, shame, shame to Fezza for dropping Carlos. But, oh, will they regret it!!
David BR (@david-br)
30th January 2025, 10:03
Great to have a guest appearance from Septa Unella.