1 week Ago By Thomas Maher
Carlos Sainz Senior has praised the way his son and Ferrari parted ways after four years together, as Lewis Hamilton arrived at Maranello. With Carlos Sainz angling for a contract extension at Ferrari, his time in red came to an end as a result of the Scuderia jumping at the chance to sign Lewis Hamilton. In January 2024, Ferrari leaped at the opportunity to sign Hamilton as the seven-time F1 World Champion – as one of F1’s hottest properties as a driver and a brand – made himself available to the Scuderia having signed a short contract extension with Mercedes months before.
With Ferrari having already signed a contract extension with Charles Leclerc, the signing of Hamilton meant there was no room at the inn for Sainz, who had appeared set for a contract negotiation. Coming off the back of a season as the only non-Red Bull race winner, Sainz’s strong form stood him in good stead but, with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity coming up for Ferrari to sign Hamilton, even the bitter disappointment of losing his seat through no fault of his own wasn’t enough to trigger any anger from Sainz. Instead, the Spaniard made it clear he understood the logic behind the decision to sign Hamilton and, as a result, the relationship between Sainz and Ferrari ended on a positive note.
With Ferrari challenging for the Constructors’ Championship, Sainz led the Scuderia’s charge in the crucial final race and only narrowly lost out on the victory which would have secured the title for Ferrari. Ferrari also agreed to release Sainz from his contract restrictions early, in order to allow him to take part in the post-season Abu Dhabi test for Williams as he joins the Grove-based squad for 2025. The good feeling between the two sides has been praised by Sainz Senior – himself a rallying and Dakar legend – who acknowledged the possibility of signing Hamilton was too good to ignore.
“I wouldn’t describe it as the Scuderia behaving badly,” Sainz Senior explained on El Cafelito . “The circumstances of the perfect storm have arisen. Ferrari was happy with Carlos but the possibility appeared because Hamilton himself produced it.
“It is he who approached Ferrari, then the circumstances arose. Perhaps that process could have been clearer, but then it would have been leaked and Ferrari did not want it to be. “But then they had a fantastic detail with [Sainz Jr], a gesture that they have not had with practically any driver in their history, which is the farewell.
“They gave him a car, they invited me to drive in Fiorano with a Formula 1 [car].” The 62-year-old Spaniard was referring to a particularly generous farewell gesture, in which the two Sainz family members were invited to Fiorano for a private outing in the F1-75. 👉 The story behind the huge missing piece in Ferrari’s trophy cabinet 👉 F1 team principals: How long has each team boss been in charge? Sainz Junior, who was gifted the car in which he won his maiden Grand Prix – the 2022 British Grand Prix – was set loose on the Ferrari test track, with his father also allowed to show his talents behind the wheel.
“I have no experience in any formula championship, very, very little, so for me it was a big thing,” Sainz Senior told The Sun. “I really enjoyed it a lot. The power, the handling, and the braking is amazing.
“To have the chance to be there with my son, what Ferrari did for him, and invite me to drive together with him was really fantastic. “It was an unbelievable day. I will never forget it because we really had good fun and obviously the experience to drive a modern Formula 1 car was unbelievable.
” While Sainz’s time with Ferrari has come to an end for now following his signing of a long-term deal with Williams, Scuderia boss Fred Vasseur has left the door open for a possible future return. With Hamilton now in his forties and closer to the end of his career than the start, might Sainz be able to return when an opening crops up again for the Maranello-based team? “Of course. We have already talked a couple of times about this,” team boss Fred Vasseur told Spain’s DAZN .
“This is a very small world. There are only 10 teams and only six or seven top drivers. You never know what is going to happen in the future, but most of us – both Carlos on his side and us on our side – have to focus on our projects.
“We don’t know what will happen in 2027, 2028, 2029...
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