'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Carlos Sainz’s podium in Baku has not only lifted Williams but also reignited the discussion around Ferrari’s decision to part ways with him. For former F1 world champion Jacques Villeneuve also shared his thoughts about the same.
The Spaniard gave the Grove team their first full-race podium since 2017, outqualifying and outracing his old team, while Lewis Hamilton is yet to stand on the Grand Prix podium this year.
Sainz’s switch to Williams came after four wins and a strong final season with Ferrari, but 17 races into his new team, he had been waiting for a breakthrough. That wait ended in Baku, where he turned a front-row start into a P3 finish.
Trending
Whereas Charles Leclerc and Hamilton could only manage P8 and P9, trapped in the midfield DRS train. Villeneuve, speaking to GP Blog, said that highlighted the qualities Sainz brought to the table.
"If you look at his career, when he’s joined a new team, it has taken him a while, half a season maybe, to get up to speed. He works at it. But in that period, he makes the whole team go better. That’s what happened in every team he’s joined.... And every time he left a team, that team went downhill. Every time. And it’s the same with Ferrari now," he said.
With 101 points so far, Williams has scored more in 2025 than in the previous seven years combined. Albon, too, has benefitted, enjoying his most consistent campaign as Sainz’s arrival has raised the level across the garage. It is something Villeneuve attributes to the Spaniard as well, citing the cases of former teammates Lando Norris and Leclerc.
At Ferrari, the numbers tell a different story. Last year, Leclerc and Sainz combined for three wins, amassing 407 points and finishing just 14 behind McLaren for the constructors’ crown. This season, Ferrari is 286 points adrift, sitting third.
Former F1 team principal shares his thoughts on Sainz's Baku win
Ferrari’s gamble has drawn criticism from other corners of the paddock, too. Guenther Steiner suggested that not everyone inside the Scuderia was convinced by the decision to trade Carlos Sainz for Lewis Hamilton.
"Rimpianto (regret) for Carlos? I think some people in the team do. I think obviously management cannot feel regret because that would be admitting that you did something wrong and you cannot do that. But I’m sure that some of the guys, they're feeling I get. Because Ferrari finished eight and ninth in Baku, Carlos Sainz in a Williams finished third. I guess the guy feeling best about it is Carlos Sainz," Steiner said on the Red Flags podcast. (6:40 onwards)
Four years into his Ferrari stint, Carlos Sainz had helped deliver the team’s closest constructors’ fight since 2008. Their near miss in 2024 gave them belief, but the winter switch has left them struggling to match McLaren’s momentum. Hamilton sits sixth in the standings with 121 points but no podiums, while Sainz already has one in Williams colors despite scoring just 39 points overall.
Currently, McLaren can seal the constructors’ title in Singapore with just 13 points, while Mercedes, Ferrari, and Red Bull are locked in a tense fight for second. For Williams, Sainz’s arrival has ended their days as backmarkers.
