Williams’ Carlos Sainz has acknowledged that his workload in 2025 has been more intense than in previous years. The increased responsibility is largely due to Williams’ limited resources in simulation and testing, which have placed more responsibility on its drivers.
A new era for Sainz
The F1 season in 2025 marked new beginnings for Sainz as he joined Williams following Hamilton’s arrival at Ferrari. The transition to the team has been anything but seamless. The Spaniard is facing his lowest in-season position since his rookie campaign in 2015.
Despite this rough start to the first half of 2025, Sainz is optimistic about Williams. Speaking to the media ahead of the British Grand Prix, Sainz noted that Williams has, in fact, grown in performance over the first half of the season.
However, the increased competitiveness has exposed internal weaknesses, issues Sainz believes must be addressed for the team to stay consistently competitive.
“A more competitive car is, for sure, putting more stress on the system. How we work, how we approach strategy, and how we execute race weekends.”
“This year, we’ve even been able to challenge Red Bull, Mercedes, and Ferrari at times — like in Miami and Imola. That’s highlighted our reliability issues and also shown where we can improve in terms of race strategy and qualifying sessions.”
Learning new skills in 2025
Sainz has described his season as both a test and a learning experience for himself and the team, as both parties are eagerly working to close the gap to the frontrunners.
“It’s been a great test for the team, a painful one at times, because we know the car has potential. We’ve had weekends where points were within reach, but small issues have held us back. That’s frustrating, but also motivating.”
The Spaniard ultimately believes that this season is crucial for him to learn how to compete against the powerhouses of F1 instead of alongside them. It’s a skill he’s not used to, having come from teams like McLaren and Ferrari.
“Thanks to this year’s step forward, we already know what needs to be better, whether it’s strategy, execution, or reliability. If we want to truly challenge the top five teams, these are the margins we need to close.”
An increased workload at Williams
Sainz also admitted that the demands on him personally have increased significantly at Williams compared to his previous teams.
“I’m doing more than I ever have with any other team. There are still a lot of tools that we’re lacking, that we’re trying to develop, and a lot of things that we still obviously need the drivers to be involved.”
One of the main reasons behind Sainz’s expanded role at Williams is the team’s limited resources and opportunities compared to top-tier outfits like Ferrari.
“While maybe we don’t have the whole setup as I used to have in Ferrari, with a simulator, with the reserve drivers, with all the simulation tools a top team could have… that involves a lot more of the driver time and to do things.”
Despite this, the Williams Driver is embracing the challenge and looking at the value in this expanded role.
“It’s also obviously a high working load year for me as a driver, which, I’m here for that. I know Williams also hired me for that capability that I have to help on those areas. I enjoy that side of my job, and I’m keen to see the results come through in the future.”
“I’m very confident in the work we’re doing back at base and the work we’re doing at the race track to improve the race team, to know that at some point all this work is going to pay off, and we’re going to start forgetting about all the issues that we’re currently having.”
