The thing has happened
It happened. Hey, everyone! The thing has happened.
We made it one day into the summer break before huge Formula 1 news broke with Carlos Sainz signing with Williams Racing on a multi-year deal.
I’ll get the strong stuff out of my system quick:
This is a way better move for Williams than it is for Sainz BUT it’s not a bad move for the Spaniard.
With the seats remaining, Williams was - and others may argue this - the best seat left. From where I sit, it’s a historic team and brand with a well-liked team principal, a teammate without much evidence of generating drama, and substantial financial backing.
That Sainz arrived at a point where Williams, Alpine, and the Audi project were his options is worth asking a few questions.
From the team side, this may be a transformational signing. In the current driver market, Sainz was The Man and he’s headed to Grove. It’s a masterstroke that comes, I believe, at a significant time for James Vowles. The season has been difficult and the summer break came at the right time as performance development in the first half of the season was slower than Vowles wanted and the upgrades never set the world alight.
Alas…
Details, meet Devil.
So much rides on the details of the Sainz contract. Is it a 2+1? A straight 3? A 3+1?
Does Sainz have an out if the car performance lags?
Vowles has denied the latter and if that’s true, it’s shocking mismanagement on the part of Sainz’s team if his ultimate goal is still performance. If his goal is to remain in Formula 1 and reap the financial benefits for the longest period possible, then they’ve done rather well.
The threat facing Williams with signing a long-term deal is the same one every team faces - what if the situation changes, what if his performance drops? It’s not without risk on their part but this is the reason I say it’s a great deal for Williams and a good one for Sainz.