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Carlos Sainz hit back at his critics during his latest media interaction ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix. The Spanish driver has recently been under the spotlight for his string of underwhelming performances with the Williams Racing team.
The 30-year-old, who joined the Grove-based outfit following his exit from Scuderia Ferrari at the end of the 2024 season, has largely failed to live up to the lofty expectations many had of him so far.
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Carlos Sainz, who made a splash during the 2025 pre-season testing by setting the fastest lap with Williams Racing, has largely failed to show any signs of his early promising start. Through the three Grand Prix races of the season so far, Sainz recorded a DNF in Australia, a 10th-place finish at the Chinese Grand Prix, and a 15th-place finish at the Japanese race.
These efforts by the former Red Bull Junior driver appear a far cry from those of current teammate Alex Albon. For context, the Thai driver has recorded a fifth-place finish, a seventh-place finish, and a ninth-place finish in the three races of the season so far.
Addressing the criticism towards his performances at the opening races of the season, the Spanish driver detailed that his critics “don’t understand the sport very well.”
Speaking ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix via Autosport, Sainz said:
“If you expect to see the best of Carlos Sainz at Williams in the third race in a new car, you don’t understand the sport very well.”
While the words of the Williams driver are indeed, to a reasonable extent, tenable, it must be stated that several top-class drivers are often expected to deliver with immediacy wherever they find themselves.
Sainz's words are also not helped by the impressive run of performances rookies like Isack Hadjar have had with their teams so far this season. Sainz will, however, hope he can further silence these criticisms with a standout display at the Sakhir circuit on coming Sunday
Carlos Sainz hits out at FIA over Japanese Grand Prix fine
Carlos Sainz has not held back his thoughts regarding the fine imposed on him by the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The Williams Racing driver was hit with a €10,000 fine for arriving late for the start of the national anthem at the Japanese Grand Prix.
The former Ferrari star was reported to have experienced an unexpected use of the toilet due to stomach troubles in the lead-up to the anthem — a claim subsequently verified by a doctor at the circuit. Sainz, during his media interaction at the Bahrain Grand Prix, detailed his frustration with the ruling by the sport's governing body.
Speaking to the media, as quoted by Sky Sports F1, the Spanish driver stated:
"I think I'm the biggest supporter of punctuality and being punctual to things, especially a national anthem, with all the authorities there. So I was the first one to put my hand up and say, 'I'm late, I'm sorry for that.'
"At the same time, I was five seconds late. And to be five seconds late and have to pay €10,000, for me, is out of the question that we're having to pay these fines."
Sainz’s penalty was initially set at €60,000; however, due to several mitigating factors in the judgment, the FIA stewards reduced the fine to €20,000, with half of it suspended, subject to a further breach within a year.
