Sainz under fire for airing Williams issues publicly

Jul.6 (GMM)  Carlos Sainz's highly-anticipated move to Williams is not off to the smoothest of starts, according to one former Formula 1 driver.

While much of the paddock’s attention is focused on the uncertain futures of Max Verstappen and Yuki Tsunoda at Red Bull, Sainz was asked whether he might ever consider returning to the energy drink company's F1 fold in 2026.

"Williams knows that it has my commitment for the next two years and beyond, if the situation allows," said the Spaniard. "I believe in the trajectory we're on, and I am very confident with the choice I made."

But the recent trajectory has been far from upward. Persistent reliability issues and a lack of car development have cast a shadow over the team's 2025 campaign — and Sainz isn’t hiding his frustration.

"We have spent most of the weekend trying to understand our reliability issues," the 30-year-old said at Silverstone. "And you've seen that we're having quite a few."

As for performance, team principal James Vowles made it clear from the outset that 2025 would be a transitional year, with focus already shifting toward the major regulations reset in 2026.

"We warned from the beginning of the season that this could happen," Sainz admitted. "We said that we weren't going to touch the car this year because we're putting everything on the line for next year's car."

Even so, he confessed that watching rivals improve while Williams remains stagnant is a bitter pill to swallow.

"The reality is that the others are running many improvement packages — Aston, Sauber, Racing Bulls. In the end, that slowly pushes you back."

Former F1 racer Christijan Albers believes Sainz's tone at Silverstone raised eyebrows.

"Wow, these are quite some statements," he told Viaplay. "We're not even halfway through the season and he's already starting to say that they're behind with the upgrades compared to the other teams.

"I don't think it's nice to say that – not in this way, anyway. You have to stand behind your team."

Albers suspects Sainz's remarks may be an attempt to shift pressure away from himself.

"Everyone was convinced that Sainz would make it at Williams," he said. "You can see that Alexander Albon has developed really well. But while he's not a bad driver, he's not a top driver like (Max) Verstappen, (George) Russell, (Charles) Leclerc.

"You can see that Sainz is having a really hard time there."]]>