Big Carlos Sainz ‘mistake’ identified amid special Williams contract clause rumours

Formula 1 analyst Peter Windsor believes Carlos Sainz has made a “big mistake” if he hasn’t included Ferrari in any potential contract clause that would allow him to break his Williams deal in F1 2025.

After months of speculation, Williams confirmed the signing of Sainz this week with the outgoing Ferrari driver agreeing a two-year contract “with options to extend.”

Carlos Sainz missing a trick with rumoured Williams contract clause?

The announcement came after Sainz’s father, the rallying great Carlos Sainz Sr, and manager Carlos Onoro had been spotted by PlanetF1.com leaving Williams’ hospitality unit during last weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix, with reports following that a deal had been signed.

F1-Insider, the German publication which broke the story at Spa that Sainz had signed a contract to join Williams, claimed that a special clause will allow the Spaniard to back out of the deal if an opportunity arises at either Red Bull or Mercedes for F1 2025.

The claims come amid growing doubts over the future of Red Bull driver and reigning World Champion Max Verstappen, who has attracted interest from Mercedes as the team look for a replacement for Ferrari-bound Lewis Hamilton.

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If true, the clause could result in the extraordinary scenario whereby Sainz never actually drives for Williams despite agreeing to join the Grove-based outfit.

Williams team principal James Vowles refused to be drawn on the terms of the arrangement of Sainz this week, dismissing talk of an exit clause as “speculation” in a meeting with select media including PlanetF1.com.

Vowles said: “There are precisely 10 people in the world that know what the interior of the contract holds. The Carlos camp know and I know what’s inside.

“So anything you have read on the internet is speculation and that is it.

“The message ’25, ’26 and beyond’ [in Williams’ official announcement] did not come from myself. That came from Carlos.

“He wanted it to be abundantly clear to all of you – to the world – that he is committed and this is where he wants to be.”

Asked about the rumours of a special Red Bull/Mercedes clause, 1992 title-winning Williams team manager Windsor claimed Sainz has made a “big mistake” if he did not insist on Ferrari being one of the teams he could leave Williams for.

Appearing on the Cameron F1 YouTube channel , he said: “Big mistake, if that’s the actual wording [of the clause], because why hasn’t he got Ferrari in there?

“Imagine if Lewis stops after one year for whatever reason and a Ferrari seat’s available.

“Imagine if Carlos Sainz has just re-signed for Williams because he’s just finished second in the Hungarian Grand Prix, and he loves the team, and then a week later there’s a seat at Ferrari available and Ferrari are on the phone saying: ‘Carlos, come back! We love you, come back!’

“What happens then?

“Why hasn’t he got Ferrari in there? Why is he only thinking Red Bull and Mercedes?

“Or is he so annoyed with Ferrari that he’d never want to drive for them instead?”

Sainz has become a hugely popular member of the Ferrari team since replacing four-time World Champion Sebastian Vettel at the start of 2021, collecting three F1 victories during his stint at Maranello so far.

The Spaniard was informed that he would be released by Ferrari last winter following the signing of seven-time World Champion Hamilton on a multi-year contract. That bombshell came just days after Charles Leclerc signed a new long-term extension in January.

However, Windsor believes that there is no guarantee that Leclerc and Hamilton, who will turn 40 next January, will see out the entirety of their deals.

He sees a return to Ferrari as a more realistic prospect for Sainz than a move to Mercedes, who are likely to promote teenage sensation Andrea Kimi Antonelli as George Russell’s new team-mate for F1 2025 if Verstappen proves unattainable.

Windsor explained: “You can’t assume anything.

“Charles Leclerc may not be there for the next two years – why would you assume that?

“There’s more chance at Ferrari, bearing in mind Lewis’s age and everything else, than there is at Mercedes where it looks like it’s going to be George and Antonelli.

“Those two are going to be in the car for the next five years. So no chance at Mercedes, you’d say.

“There’s more chance that he’s going to get an opportunity again at Ferrari, especially if he kept that door open with that contract and said: ‘I love you, guys. The minute you want me back, I’ll be with you.’

“Why wouldn’t he have done that? I find that very odd.”

In a sign of the team’s affection for the 29-year-old, Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur took the highly unusual step of issuing a statement after Sainz’s switch to Williams was officially confirmed.

It read: “I am pleased that Carlos will be joining Williams Racing from next season.

“It’s a team with a great history and legacy, founded by an enlightened man with an ambitious vision, so I know Carlos will feel at home there.

“I have great respect for James and I am sure Carlos will make a valuable contribution to his team.

“For now, Carlos is still very much a Ferrari driver and over the remaining 10 races we will all be working hard, focusing on our goals, fighting together for every single point until the very last lap of this championship.”

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