Sainz's bad streak continues: "It's starting to get frustrating, even depressing"

The Italian Grand Prix ended on a bitter note for Carlos Sainz, who finished eleventh. The weekend highlighted the contrast between Sainz's past results at Classic Ferrari for sale and his first more difficult season at WilliamsThe driver had to compete in front of fans who were cheering him on in red just a year ago and who had cheered him on the podium in 2023, the year he also took pole position. This time, the new Williams driver finished his race in relative indifference from a Ferrari-supporting crowd. The irony of seeing his blue car closely following the red cars on the lap of honour was not lost on the stands.

The weekend had started well for the Madrid driver. Sainz had set the third fastest time on the grid in both FP1 and FP2. In the final practice session, often more revealing than the first two, Sainz recorded only the thirteenth fastest time. He repeated this statistic that same afternoon in qualifying. Starting in thirteenth position, Carlos Sainz made a good start to the race, running on medium tires like the drivers ahead of him.

« We had some problems today. We were the last to start on mediums, so it was going to be difficult to make a comeback while all the riders in front of me were starting on the same tires. We extended our stint on the medium tires for a long time. And then we made a good comeback with the hard tires. I was faster than Bearman, in front, faster than Bortoleto. » recalled Carlos Sainz.

Note that the Spaniard changed his medium tires on the thirtieth lap – later than recommended by the manufacturer Pirelli.

Yet another mishap strikes Carlos Sainz at Monza

Once fitted with hard tires, the Spanish driver set out to attack his rivals. Despite complaining about his Williams' battery on the radio a few laps earlier, Carlos Sainz managed to overtake Oliver Bearman in the third corner. The driver Haas immediately tried to regain his position in the Variante Della Roggia chicane, while the Spaniard was leading at the apex. Too ambitious according to the FIAThe Briton caused the collision that damaged both cars, causing them to spin. The collision was costly for Sainz, who finished just outside the points in eleventh place. Oliver Bearman, meanwhile, received two penalty points for the accident.

« When I wanted to overtake Oliver, unfortunately we touched. It ruined my race with the damage it caused. It wasn't Not the easiest race, we also had battery issues. It was a tough day at the office." lamented the Williams driver.

“I have to keep pushing, my qualifying pace is there. My race pace is there too. At some point, it will. But I’m not going to lie, it’s starting to get frustrating, even depressing. " confessed the Spaniard.

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Before the race began, Carlos Sainz's weekend was marred by an incident. Isack Hadjar attacked the Spaniard on Canal+, accusing the Williams driver of disrupting his Q1 warm-up lap. “He drove me crazy during my entire prep lap " ranted the Racing Bulls rookie. A few days earlier, it was Liam Lawson who criticized Carlos Sainz for their collision at Zandvoort. The Williams driver received a ten-second penalty, deemed unfair by his team, which requested the revisionThese incidents illustrate the difficulties encountered by Sainz since the start of his 2025 season, in the face of the brilliant performances ofAlexander albon, still 7th at Monza.

Carlos Sainz's season is indeed in stark contrast to that of his teammate. The Thai driver currently holds seventh place in the drivers' championship, while Sainz is at the bottom of the standings, in eighteenth position. The Madrid driver has only beaten his teammate three times this season (excluding retirements), in Jeddah and Budapest. Carlos Sainz, who had shone in the past with Ferrari – 4 wins, 25 podiums in four seasons – still doesn't seem to have adapted to a car that clearly doesn't suit him yet. One of the most highly rated drivers on the grid last year seems to have lost some of his sparkle at Williams this year. With 8 rounds still to go, the only man to have beaten Red Bull in 2023 (victory in Singapore) must regain confidence to start the regulatory revolution of 2026 on the right foot, where he will be expected to be at least at the level of Alex Albon.

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