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Carlos Sainz has recently claimed that he would have loved to partner Max Verstappen again at Red Bull, and doesn't understand why the team did not approach him. F1 fans online have reacted to the Spaniard's comments, with many of them sharing their mixed reactions via X.
Speaking recently, Carlos Sainz admitted that he did not understand why Red Bull did not want him to partner Max Verstappen in 2025. He also claimed that he has a positive and healthy relationship with the 4x world champion.
"We had a rivalry on our first year in F1 at Toro Rosso, but it was a relatively healthy rivalry in terms of him and me, the way we used to go about racing. And now we get on really well," said Sainz. [via the High Performance podcast]
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"So, if that's the reason I don't understand why they wouldn't want me next to Max, because I think we would actually be a very strong pairing in F1," he added.
F1 fans online reacted to these comments by Sainz, as a few agreed with him while a few claimed he is better off staying away.
"Glad he avoided it cuz Red bull is a sinking ship," said one fan.
"bro is lucky he didn’t end up there tho😭," said another user.
"Honestly, he should be thankful for this. Red Bull second seat is a career reaper," said yet another fan.
Here are some additional reactions:
"Maybe they actually love Carlos and they didn't want him driving a soapbox derby car," joked a fan.
"Carlos is one of the few drivers that can actually beat Max. They didn’t want all that competition at the team," said another user.
"Because your father and his father won't play nicely," claimed another fan.
Carlos Sainz was unfortunate to lose out on his Ferrari seat as Lewis Hamilton came in to replace the driver in 2025. With the lack of any approaches from the front-running teams, the 30-year-old settled for a move to Williams.
Carlos Sainz confident he would do well against Max Verstappen at Red Bull
Carlos Sainz has claimed that he would do well against Max Verstappen at Red Bull, explaining that he did not struggle against the Dutchman during their time together at Toro Rosso. The pair were promoted to F1 together at the Red Bull sister team in 2015.
Speaking on the aforementioned podcast, Sainz explained why he has the confidence to go up against Verstappen at Red Bull.
"I think everyone's having a really tough time being Max's team-mate. I can only say that when I was Max's team-mate, I didn't have this tough time," said Sainz.
"I was obviously incredibly surprised with how quick he was, with how he's an insane driver. I mean, he's going to go out to be one of the best ever in history, if he's not already one. But that first year together, since then, has given me the confidence to know I can be up against anyone," he added.
After his stint at Toro Rosso, Sainz ended up moving away to Renault in 2017, while Verstappen had already received a promotion to Red Bull midway through the 2016 season.
