10 Years of Carlos Sainz Jr

A decade passed, teams changed and yet, he and his hair remained smooth. Carlos Sainz Jr recently completed his 10th year in Formula 1 and has become an asset in every team he has ever raced for. In this article, we’ll cover the last decade with the Spanish driver.

Carlos Sainz Vázquez de Castro Cenamor Rincón…or shortly Carlos Sainz Jr, was born in Madrid, Spain on the 1st of September 1994. His father, Carlos Sainz, is a Spanish rallying legend with 2 WRC and 4 Dakar Rally Championships to his name. Sainz Jr has always received very close support from his family throughout his racing career. His father was not only an influential figure as a successful racing driver, but also a mentor in his journey. Another important family member helping Carlos in his journey is his cousin and manager, Carlos “Caco” Oñoro Sainz. You can always see Caco in F1 weekends, following his cousin and his career development around the world. However, the most influential figure in his development was his driving coach, María de Villota. De Villota was not only a driving coach, but also a test driver for Marussia F1 Team with decent open-wheel racing experience. In 2013, during a test with the team, De Villota had an accident and suffered serious head injuries. Despite recovering and making public appearances after the incident, she was found dead in Seville a year later. “María didn't only help me when I was 13 and I was pursuing the dream of being at the wheel of a single-seater, but I also had the opportunity to do 10 or 20 laps on track following her,” claims Sainz Jr about his close relationship with his coach. “Legado María de Villota” was founded in 2014 after her death to provide children with treatment against genetic neuromuscular illnesses and Carlos was named its ambassador in 2016. He has carried a star on all his helmets since 2014 in her honour. Carlos’ first experiences in an F1 car came in 2013 in the form of some test runs which were then followed in 2014 by post-season test sessions. 

The Spaniard signed his first F1 contract for Toro Rosso for the 2015 season as a Red Bull junior. Much like his teammate, Max Verstappen, he made a jump from GP3 to F1 and made his debut at the Australian GP, scoring points in his first race by finishing 9th. But, this good beginning didn’t turn into consistency at first. He had a rough first two seasons, finishing 15th in 2015 and 12th in 2016, but there were some signs of improvement. From 2017 on, he added consistency into his increasing form, which led to his best career result at the time of 4th in the chaotic Singapore GP. Despite his good performance, Carlos’ biggest issue as a Red Bull junior was the timing. Red Bull had a strong pair of Ricciardo and Verstappen behind their wheels and during that time, a promotion from Toro Rosso to Red Bull was highly unlikely. So, Carlos decided to switch to Renault for the 2018 season, in fact, he didn’t even wait a lot and made the switch during the 2017 Malaysian GP. This early switch also boosted Pierre Gasly’s signing into F1.

In 2018, he helped Renault get 4th place in the Constructors’ Championship. In his first season with them, he went up against a more experienced teammate, Nico Hülkenberg, and his performance was not so far off from him. But, his time at Renault was cut short when they announced Daniel Ricciardo for the 2019 season. So, it was time for another switch, this time to the papaya-coloured Woking side.

McLaren signed Carlos in order to replace another Spanish driver, his idol, Fernando Alonso. They gave him a chance alongside one of their own development drivers, Lando Norris and so was “Carlando” born in 2019. In McLaren, his consistent performance shifted another gear. Silently, away from the broadcast, which was still something he was complaining about during the 2025 season, he picked up to greater heights. He led McLaren to their first podium in 5 years, after an overtaking galore of a performance. During the pandemic year, point scoring not only became usual for the once again rising McLaren, but also for the rising Spaniard. He added some top 3 qualifying results and another podium finish in Monza. They started calling him the “Smooth Operator” for his performance and his smooth operations caught the attention of a specific team. The red one that is associated with glory…

The ‘Prancing Horses’ knocked on the door of McLaren for the Spaniard to replace Sebastian Vettel in 2021. And so began Carlos to his longest serving adventure so far in Formula 1. Despite Ferrari’s tough times right before the Ground Effect Era, he managed to score 5 podiums in his first season in red. However, Ferrari isn’t a team that someone can settle down with podiums; they mean victory. On his 150th grand prix weekend, Carlos not only got his first pole position but also converted it into his first-ever F1 race win in Silverstone, a year and a half after his Ferrari debut. In the Red Bull-dominated 2023 season, Sainz Jr. was the only driver other than Red Bull to win a race. He added two more wins to his tally at Melbourne and Mexico City in 2024. His win in Australia was particularly special because it came only 16 days after his appendicitis surgery. Despite still being the most recent Ferrari race winner and being consistent, when the time came for Lewis Hamilton’s arrival at Maranello, he was once again the one being axed. Despite his initial shock about the move, he later admitted that he understood the significance of this signing and why he was the one to be sacrificed for it to happen. His performance in the 2024 season was a great advertisement for his future and another British motorsport giant got his signature on the paper.

After James Vowles’ long and stubborn efforts, Carlos finally believed in Williams' long-term project and signed for them for the 2025 season. Despite the majority believing that this would be a major setback, Carlos did the unthinkable. In his first season with Williams, the Spaniard led them to their first podium since 2017. He finished the season in 9th place in the Drivers’ Championship, scored a total of 64 points, 3 podiums and qualified on the front row twice. Carlos became only the second driver to have stepped on the podium steps for Ferrari, McLaren and Williams. A remarkable first season of this new partnership…

In conclusion, Carlos Sainz Jr left his smooth mark on the sport in his first decade. He has become known for improving the teams he drives for and his effective communication style with his engineers. Although teams haven’t minded axing him for other drivers, he has proven himself as a committed team player and a talented driver. Next year, the 31-year-old driver will be in the last year of his contract with Williams and his interests for the 2027 season are still unknown. If his performance continues its rise in 2026, we may see the Smooth Operator once again in the top spots with Williams or with another top team that may become interested in him.

Article written by Emre Albas © Emre Albas 2026