Ted Kravitz outlines how Williams must ‘step up’ when Carlos Sainz arrives from Ferrari in 2025

Carlos Sainz will race for the final time with Ferrari at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix before making his move to Williams in 2025.

The Spaniard has known he will be leaving the famous red team since February when it was announced that Lewis Hamilton would be joining Ferrari next year on a multi-year deal, leaving Sainz out of the team.

After months of speculation as to where the 30-year-old would end up in 2025, Sainz eventually confirmed he would be joining Williams alongside Alex Albon in what is a huge coup from the Grove-based outfit.

Many people have questioned the move, considering that Sainz is moving from the second-best on the grid to the second-worst team. Williams are sat ninth in the Constructors’ Championship heading into Abu Dhabi having scored just 17 points.

Sainz has insisted Williams is not a step back simply because he will remain in F1 next season, however, it is clear that there is a lot of work to do at Williams if they want to be competitive. The team are targeting a return to the front of the grid when the new technical regulations come into effect in 2026.

Speaking on Sky Sports F1 after FP3, Ted Kravitz outlined how Williams must ‘step up’ when Sainz arrives from Ferrari in 2025.

Ted Kravitz says Carlos Sainz has a ‘better pedigree’ than Alex Albon’s previous Williams teammates

It would be fair to say that Albon has carried Williams on his back for the last three seasons. While the Thai driver has battled to get into Q3 and score points, his teammates over the years have struggled to match his performances.

Nicholas Latifi scored just two points as Albon’s teammate in 2022, while Logan Sargeant managed half that total in 36 Grand Prix before he was sacked and replaced by Franco Colapinto.

While the Argentine has put in some impressive performances – scoring five points from his opening four races – Kravitz says Williams will have to ‘step up’ when he links up with Gaetan Jego and his side of the garage. Sainz joins the team as a three-time race winner, carrying the ‘pedigree and experience’ that Albon’s other teammates have not had.

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“It’s going to be really interesting because he will inherit the engineering team of Gaetan Jego, who’s currently doing great things with Franco Colapinto and his side of the garage,” he said.

“Now something that’s going to be a bit of a step up, because Gaetan Jego has engineering Franco Colapinto, Nicholas Latifi and Logan Sargeant.

“With the best most respect to those guys, they may not have had the certain pedigree and experience and success that Carlos Sainz is going to bring to that side of the Wiliams garage.”

Can Carlos Sainz end his Ferrari career with silverware in Abu Dhabi?

After spending four years with Ferrari, Sainz will be hoping to end his stint with the Maranello outfit with some silverware, and the team are in the hunt for the constructors’ title with McLaren.

Ferrari trails the Woking-based outfit by 21 points heading into Abu Dhabi. While it is a gap that can be closed down, McLaren’s pace at the Yas Marina Circuit is certain to make things difficult for the Italian team.

And Ferrari were dealt an even bigger blow after practice as Charles Leclerc was hit with a 10-place grid penalty for the race after changing his battery.

While Andrea Stella thinks Leclerc can recover from his penalty and fight towards the front, it is a huge uphill battle for Ferrari to beat McLaren in the standings, who have looked incredibly quick all weekend in Abu Dhabi.