Williams is gearing up for F1’s biggest comeback ever. Team Principal James Vowles described Carlos Sainz’s signing as a “strong statement of intent” from both parties. However, ascending from the tail end of the pecking order to conquering F1 is no mean feat. It will require more than a few years of work. This will force Sainz, who is competing for podiums and wins with Ferrari, into an uncomfortable corner next year.

Williams has an iconic legacy in F1 with 9 constructors’ championships. However, reminiscing about the glory of yesteryear will not return them to those heights. Quitting Mercedes to lead Williams was a strong statement by Vowles, who believed in the team’s caliber. He convinced Sainz to pull off a similar move and join him in resurrecting the Oxfordshire-based team. However, the Ferrari driver has only recently come into his own. Stepping down to a backmarker team at such a stage wasn’t part of his career plan. Moreover, Vowles has more bad news for him.

The Briton divulged the contract talks with Sainz on the F1 Nation podcast, highlighting the depth of the conversation. “We put together… this is the way you are performance-wise, which allows him a clear view of where the real performance is of certain elements of things,” he said, adding, “And that’s fairly encouraging. What I also showed him is what we’re investing in the future, in a lightweight way. I couldn’t give him the in-depth way, (I told him) how much we’re investing, why we’re doing that, what I believe in, and how long it’ll take to come on board.”

Vowles elaborated on how he informed Carlos Sainz about Williams’ newest hires but also didn’t hide the dire expectations for next year. “He knew about all the people we are signing, but by the way, there are more that we haven’t announced yet. But I took him through all of that – what we’re doing, why we’re changing what we’re changing, why it will take the time it will take, why 2024 is more of a compromise. And by the way, 2025 is a compromise as well. And that was a difficult position for him because he’s hyper-competitive and doesn’t want to be on the back foot in ’25,” he concluded.

The Spaniard was between a rock and a hard place. But because Williams was the best of the worst, his decision came through, albeit taking its sweet time. Why Red Bull and Mercedes didn’t get into a contract fight over him is still a mystery. Not just to fans, but also to his close ones.

Carlos Sainz’s family upset with Red Bull & Mercedes

You’d imagine that top teams would be eagerly awaiting an opportunity to sign Ferrari’s 3-time Grand Prix winner in his prime. But when the situation arose, neither RBR nor Mercedes even gave it a serious thought. Christian Horner’s deal was termed “stingy” and Toto Wolff’s offer was for a lesser tenure than Carlos Sainz wanted. Many faces from the paddock were baffled at this, and F1TV presenter Lawrence Barretto reckons the Sainz family was too.

“I think what is most disappointing from the family’s perspective, my belief, at least, is Red Bull and Merc just didn’t chase him properly,” Barretto said on the Pad-Hoc podcast. “Yeah, they never really went after him and I’m almost certain neither of them really genuinely ever offered him anything, whether that’s a one-year deal.”

A one-year deal wasn’t Sainz’s cup of tea because he wanted to build a winning team around him. Contrary to the frontrunners, Williams offers exactly that despite being much slower on track. In Alex Albon, the Spaniard will still get a formidable teammate like Charles Leclerc at Ferrari. Though 2025 looks to be a write-off like this year and much of Williams’ recent past, his race-winning presence is what the team needs.

Going into the second half of 2024, the Spaniard will look to finish his ‘dream’ Ferrari stint on a high. Irrespective of what awaits him on the other side, the Williams partnership brings promise. Will James Vowles & Co hit the nail on the head with their developments? What do you think? Let us know in the comments below.