Carlos Sainz has already had the chance to drive for his new Formula 1 team Williams. Less than 24 hours after his final appearance for Ferrari at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, he carried out a filming day for the Grove outfit.
Ferrari gave Sainz permission to make an early debut of sorts as they prepare to integrate Lewis Hamilton. He also featured in the post-season test on Tuesday.
Sainz logged an enormous 145 laps, the equivalent of exactly 2.5 race distances at Yas Marina, on the final day of running in 2024. He was second fastest behind his old teammate Charles Leclerc.
Williams will hold a launch event at Silverstone on 14 February, marking Sainz’s first official appearance in their colours. Four days later, they will reveal their livery, along with the rest of the teams, at London’s O2 Arena.
Sainz’s first meaningful running in the 2025 car will come during pre-season testing. That’s scheduled for 26-28 February in Bahrain.
The four-time race-winner has certainly taken on a mighty task. Williams finished second from bottom in last year’s constructors’ standings, though James Vowles has repeatedly said their focus is on maximising the 2026 regulation changes.
Carlos Sainz’s detailed feedback to Williams gets F1 fans talking
On Friday, Williams shared ‘unseen footage’ of Sainz’s filming day on their official YouTube channel. Microphones in the garage picked up what he was saying to his new engineers.
Teams are limited to a distance of 200km in their promotional outings. But that was all Sainz needed to offer detailed feedback.
The 30-year-old assured his colleagues that he could help them improve the car if the data aligned with his impressions. And he also made note of the aggressive brake tools used by predecessor Franco Colapinto.
He said: “I would like to look into a bit of detail with you the front and rear slips of my lap, and the wheel separation of the diff [differential], especially when I go back on throttle, that moment. I feel like it maybe has a bit of delay on how quick it closes.
“Show me some data when you’re done, and I can tell you whether I think it’s too much or not enough. Let’s focus tonight on front and rear slips, and diff wheel separation. I need to see on data what I feel in the car. I think if I can see what I feel, I can help you a lot to fine-tune.
“We’re talking fine-tuning. The last tunes for me were working well. With these tools of Franco, you can brake a bit later. I’m happy.”
Many fans in the comments section seemed impressed. One said Sainz’s technical knowledge would make 2025 ‘a thing of beauty’, while another was surprised that he’d gathered so much information ‘in such a short span of time’.
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Likewise, a fan said it was ‘amazing’ that he could ‘instantly tell’ where Williams were lacking. And a fellow Sainz supporter said the ‘tech-savvy’ version of Sainz was their ‘favourite’.
Sainz already works ‘so well with the team’, an additional commenter said. He was also praised for being ‘demanding when he should be but always respectful’.
Carlos Sainz joined Williams over Alpine after Flavio Briatore denied him one thing
Vowles signed Sainz principally because he’s rapid on track. The former McLaren driver has notched six poles and 27 podiums in addition to his race wins, and consistently challenged Charles Leclerc.
But Vowles sees Sainz as an all-rounder. He can guide the team’s development, and then extract the most from the upgrades they bolt on.
He came close to joining Alpine, who eventually ended up signing Jack Doohan. Briatore denied Sainz a short-term deal, insisting that he sign for four years.
Vowles was ready to be more flexible. Sainz can leave Williams at the end of 2026 thanks to a get-out clause in his contract if he’s not satisfied with their progress.
