Carlos Sainz says Lewis Hamilton’s struggles at Ferrari in F1 2025 have allowed fans to “better understand” the hidden challenges of switching teams in Formula 1.
Sainz was forced to make way for Hamilton at Ferrari at the end of last season, with the Spaniard agreeing a multi-year deal with the Williams team.
Carlos Sainz responds to Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari woes
Both drivers have made slow starts in their new environments, with Hamilton under pressure after a troubled beginning to his Ferrari career.
Despite converting pole position into victory at the Chinese Grand Prix sprint race in March, the seven-time World Champion has struggled to match team-mate Charles Leclerc for pace and has finished no higher than fourth in a main race so far.
Sainz has also been outperformed by his new team-mate Alex Albon, with the Spaniard falling in Q1 at his home race in Barcelona earlier this month.
The four-time grand prix winner currently trails Albon by 30 points in the Drivers’ standings entering this weekend’s Canadian Grand Prix.
Williams are the fifth team Sainz has represented since making his debut in 2015 after previous stints with Toro Rosso (now Racing Bulls), Renault (now Alpine), McLaren and Ferrari.
And he has claimed that Hamilton’s woes at Ferrari have shone a light on the challenges facing drivers after a big team move.
Asked how his adaptation to life at Williams is going, he told said “I think this topic is getting so much attention because a great driver is currently facing the difficulties of changing teams.
“Now people are noticing something I’ve long been familiar with – I’ve switched teams five times.
“I remember my year at Renault, two years at McLaren and back then, when I said I was still adapting, I don’t think people understood what that meant.
“[People would say]: ‘You’re an F1 driver, you’re supposed to adapt quickly’ – but I don’t think people truly grasp what that involves.
“It’s not an excuse, but now this issue is better understood.
“I speak with other drivers who’ve changed teams and they all say that without testing, the only way to try things is during race weekends – and that obviously puts you at a disadvantage.
“But it’s the only way to grow, and that process takes time. There are dozens of little things that vary from team to team.
“If we’re talking about power units, there’s engine braking, torque curves.
“Then there are other elements like the differential, the feel of brake discs from different suppliers, tyre warm-up procedures on the outlap, tyre management in races, the qualifying lap approach – a lot of variables that are hugely important in modern F1.
“A driver who’s spent three or four years in the same team obviously has a deep familiarity with all those things and can maximise performance.
“In my case, I look at Alex – and also Charles at Ferrari, [Max] Verstappen at Red Bull or [George] Russell at Mercedes – to get to that level of feeling takes time, because they simply have that familiarity with things someone new to the team doesn’t know.
“You can only discover them during race weekends – driving, analysing data, or even copying – and that takes time.”
Sainz has repeatedly pointed to the lack of testing available in modern F1 as a factor behind his muted start at Williams, telling media including PlanetF1.com that the current three days of winter running is a “ridiculously little” amount.
The 30-year-old, who became a director of the Grand Prix Drivers’ Association last winter, also called for the sport to make “a bit of an effort” to come up with an extended testing schedule – spanning around eight or 10 days – going forward.
Speaking at the recent Spanish Grand Prix, 2016 World Champion and Sky F1 pundit Nico Rosberg claimed that Sainz is in a “very, very uncomfortable” situation at Williams having fallen 30 points behind Albon at such an early stage of F1 2025.
Rosberg told Sky F1: “It’s not been the easiest of starts to the season.
“Alex has done a fantastic job. We’ve seen the flashes of brilliance from Carlos, but it’s been a bit up and down.
“And also, especially if you look at the points now, he is very, very far behind Alex on the points.
“That’s very, very uncomfortable for him to be in that kind of situation.
“But we know he’s a great driver so I’m sure he’ll find his feet there within the team and get going.
“I think the rest of the season should be a good one, but Alex Albon has been impressive.”