Guenther Steiner asserts ‘good guy’ Carlos Sainz should’ve gone to a manufacturer team instead of Williams for 2025
Guenther Steiner believed Carlos Sainz was better off joining a manufacturer team instead of Williams for 2025 onwards.
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Guenther Steiner and Carlos Sainz (via IMAGO)
Carlos Sainz‘s shocking switch to Williams after being ousted from Ferrari caught everyone off-guard. Sainz was considered for multiple teams in the middle order of the grid. The 29-year-old was unsuccessful in landing a seat at Red Bull or Mercedes. Hence, upon this, Guenther Steiner reckoned that Sainz should’ve considered joining an OEM team instead of Williams.
James Vowles had previously noted that Carlos Sainz ‘wasn’t a fool’ to consider joining Williams in 2025. Sainz believed the Grove-based constructor was the ‘right place’ for him. Guenther Steiner claimed Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz would form a great pair at Williams. However, Steiner didn’t expect this move from the Spaniard.
I think that they have one of the best driver pairings in Formula 1. Alex and Carlos are very good in my opinion and I respect them both, but I did not expect that Carlos would go there.
Guenther Steiner said on the racingnews365 podcast
The reason for this was that Williams’ 2024 performance wasn’t as competitive as the rest of the grid in a similar place. Regardless, the new regulations in 2026 could witness a resurrection of performance from Grove. Subsequently, Steiner noted that a good guy like Sainz would be better off at a manufacturer team instead of Williams.
Because you can see that this year, the Williams is not [as competitive] as it was supposed to be and we need to be honest about that. Normally, a good guy will go for a manufacturer team, but obviously James has told him something to convince Carlos and Carlos went there.Guenther Steiner added
Guenther Steiner ‘surprised’ after James Vowles convinced Carlos Sainz to join Williams
Carlos Sainz was the prime candidate for Audi and even Alpine after Flavio Briatore‘s arrival. However, James Vowles worked his magic on Sainz and confirmed him with the constructor. Steiner was surprised by this situation and claimed he had ‘no idea’ what the team principal said. The Spaniard chose Grove over the manufacturer teams who could’ve provided him better prospects.
I have no idea what he said, but I was very surprised that Carlos picked Williams if he had doors open to Alpine and Audi, because they are manufacturer teams.Guenther Steiner noted
Williams will have to attempt to score a comeback in performance after the disappointing start to the 2024 season. Logan Sargeant has continued to fail to score any points over the first half. Hence, the American driver has declining chances of landing a seat with any of the other teams on the grid for the coming season.
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Aditya Pandya
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