Carlos Sainz wants to make it clear that he has never doubted his F1 future at Williams. In the run-up to the Dutch GP at Zandvoort, he announced that he has signed a new, ‘multi-year contract’. Prior to that news, the Spaniard was heavily linked to a transfer. Audi seemed the most realistic destination for Sainz, but now that he has recommitted to Williams, he can confirm that the German team was never a serious option.
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Williams is facing a difficult season in 2026. The FW48 has lost ground compared to the competition, resulting in the team scoring no points in the last six races. Partly due to the lack of competitiveness, there was much discussion about Sainz’s future in the first half of the season. The Spaniard is considered a top driver within the F1 field; in the past, he has already achieved important successes with McLaren and Ferrari. As a result, he was frequently linked in recent months to the promising Audi, which has close ties to the family thanks to the rally career of Sainz’s father.
However, Sainz emphasized to Autosport that these were nothing more than rumors and that he never seriously considered a move. “No, they were just the usual rumors in the paddock,” he said. “I can confirm that I never seriously considered going anywhere else this year.” There seems to be little change in that for the coming seasons. As is known, he has signed a multi-year agreement with Williams.
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Carlos Sainz: ‘It’s not in my nature to leave now’
Sainz explains that his choice is not only based on Williams’ current performance but also on his personal conviction not to leave a project once it becomes difficult. “The usual process is that before you sign a contract, you always assess the overall situation,” he explained. “But when we laid everything on the table, another aspect came up that is very important to me: I have never liked leaving a team when it is going through a difficult period. It’s not in my nature to go somewhere else when the situation worsens.”
“When I committed to the Williams project, I knew that difficult moments could come,” Sainz admitted. “Although the period we are going through now is particularly tough, I am willing to accept it. No one in the team is happy with the current situation and we are doing everything we can to turn it around as quickly as possible. But as I said: it’s not in my nature to abandon ship as soon as it gets tough.”
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