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Carlos Sainz's father was seen seemingly exchanging phone numbers with Flavio Briatore of Alpine. The latter recently returned to F1 as the team's Executive Advisor.
As the 2024 F1 season progresses, the question of Sainz's future gets bigger. He will be replaced by Lewis Hamilton at Ferrari in 2025 and has not signed a contract with any other team until now.
Sainz was rumored to be in contact with multiple teams including Mercedes, Red Bull, and Audi. He was also linked to Williams. However, something interesting was noticed on his home soil earlier this week.
Carlos Sainz's father, Sainz Sr., was spotted in conversation with Flavio Briatore. The two seemed to be exchanging numbers.
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While this could mean absolutely nothing, there is a small chance that the Spaniard might be scoping out more options. Briatore returned to Formula 1 after a long break. He was previously involved with Renault and has been appointed by the brand again to serve as their F1 division's (Alpine) Executive Advisor.
Esteban Ocon will no longer be continuing with Alpine at the end of this season, as announced earlier. Carlos Sainz could be eyeing the vacant seat. Although moving to a team that is currently competing largely at the bottom would be a downgrade for him, they showed promising improvement in the Spanish GP with a P9 and P10 finish.
Carlos Sainz to decide his future F1 team "very soon"
The F1 driver market has not been very active recently. There are multiple teams with drivers whose contracts are expiring at the end of this season. While some like Red Bull have already offered an extension to their drivers (Sergio Perez, till the end of the 2026 season), others have a spot.
Amidst this, Carlos Sainz's future team has become a large topic of speculation for the Paddock and the media. The 29-year-old seemingly wants to put an end to these speculations and focus on the rest of the season as he told the media earlier in Spain. He stated that he would decide his team "very soon."
"I have everything on the table and I will decide very soon because I want to get rid of thoughts about the future and concentrate on the rest of the season with Ferrari. This year I have a car that allows me to aim for the podium and be able to win some races, I want to be focused on the goal."
