Sainz To Williams And Red Bull To Retain Pérez

Finally, we have a conclusion, at least for now, as to the futures of Formula 1 drivers Carlos Sainz and Sergio Pérez, with the former set to move to Williams next year after all, and Red Bull, somewhat surprisingly, opting not to replace the latter during the current summer break.

In February, Ferrari, his current F1 employer, informed the 29-year-old Sainz that they would drop him at the end of this season to accommodate Sir Lewis Hamilton's arrival from Mercedes. The talented and experienced Spaniard was understandably shocked by this, leading to a protracted series of negotiations with numerous other teams to find a new home for next year.

When it became clear that Mercedes and Red Bull would not be offering him a seat, the focus centred on Williams, Sauber/Audi, and latterly Alpine. Ultimately, he has agreed to what Williams has described as a “multi-year” contract for 2025 and beyond, with its team principal, James Vowles, denying the rumours that Sainz’s contract includes a break clause after year one if potential openings higher up the grid arise. Sainz’s arrival will mean the departure of current Williams driver Logan Sargeant, who has performed relatively poorly over the last two seasons, but at least the American will compete for the British-based outfit for the remainder of the current campaign before his F1 career will probably end. The British-born Thai driver, Alex Albon, who already races for Williams, will be Sainz’s new teammate, and Sainz will continue to compete under his current number, 55.

Bearing in mind Sainz’s unsuccessful recent attempts to obtain a seat with a front of the grid team, it was interesting to hear the likeable Spaniard say as part of the Williams press release announcing his arrival that he is “fully confident that Williams is the right place for me to continue my F1 journey.” I guess he probably couldn’t really say anything else under the circumstances. Audi had made it clear that they wanted him to lead their forthcoming F1 entry and had made him a financially generous long-term offer, but it’s apparent that Sainz feels that Williams offers the best opportunity for progress up the grid. In announcing his new driver’s forthcoming arrival, Vowles enthused: “Carlos joining Williams is a strong statement of intent from both parties, and in Alex and Carlos we will have one of the most formidable driver line-ups on the grid, with huge experience to guide us into the new regulations in 2026.”

Meanwhile, the Red Bull position is less clearcut after another poor performance from the underpressure Pérez in Belgium last weekend, when he started second but went backwards to an eighth-place finish before George Russell’s disqualification promoted him to seventh. However, the team’s management met yesterday and decided to retain the services of its Mexican driver when the season resumes at Zandvoort in late August. What is unclear though is what may happen as the second part of the season progresses before the Abu Dhabi finale in December, and the quality of Pérez’s results will continue to be monitored very closely as Red Bull seeks to retain its shrinking lead in the constructors’ championship.

Yesterday's Red Bull meeting also decided to keep Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo as the current driver line-up of its sister RB team, at least for the time being.