"I was 99% sure that I would continue with Ferrari": Carlos Sainz pulls back the curtain on why the Lewis Hamilton news was tough for him

Williams F1 driver Carlos Sainz claimed that he was "99% sure" that he would continue with Ferrari before the news of Lewis Hamilton joining the Italian team emerged last year. The Spanish driver ended his ties with the Prancing Horses at the end of the 2024 season to make for the arrival of the seven-time F1 world champion.

The 30-year-old started his tenure with the Scuderia in 2021 and won all of his four races with them in his four-year stay. However, he was caught by the news of two of the biggest names in F1 joining hands for an iconic partnership in 2025.

While appearing on the Fast and the Curious podcast, Carlos Sainz revealed that it took him some time to accept the reality of losing his seat to Lewis Hamilton. He said:

"It was tough and I'm not going to lie to you, it was a a tough moment in my career. But it was tough I think especially because it was unexpected I think it would have been expected it wouldn't have been tough. It would have been actually something relatively easy to get on with.

"The fact that it was so unexpected that it was not, I wouldn't say hidden from me, but it didn't until the day before that or the week before that I didn't know I was 99% sure I would continue in Ferrari. That's what made it tough."

After announcing his exit, Carlos Sainz was ignored by the top teams for a position in the 2025 season and had to settle for midfield options. He ultimately went with the Grove-based outfit after getting convinced by team principal James Vowles about the project.

Carlos Sainz explains Williams' eagerness to learn from his past experiences

Williams F1 driver Carlos Sainz stated that the iconic British team had been "extremely excited" to hear about his past experiences with other top teams like McLaren and Ferrari.

Speaking with RacingNews365, the Spanish driver spoke about the team and said:

“I have a lot of things that I can talk about from my past, previous life. What’s been very important to me, and what I like from this team, is that they’re extremely excited to hear me, to listen and they’re asking a lot of questions.

“In every meeting that I’m in, everyone is feeling free also to ask these questions, and these meetings are going on for long periods of time. In all the meetings, we are exceeding the planned time of one hour that that meeting should take.”

Carlos Sainz joined the Williams F1 team on a multi-year contract that would see him race for them until the end of the 2026 season. However, it would be fascinating to see if during his time he can guide the British team back to competitiveness on the grid.