How can someone surrounded by hundreds of people throughout the year feel lonely? Somehow, today’s fast-paced work environment sets many people to feel the same. F1, the fastest of fast-paced worlds, is no different. A month ago, McLaren ace Lando Norris reflected on his missed childhood. He felt that F1’s constantly traveling circus prevented him from experiencing his “growing-up period.” Going to races and coming back to work on the simulator was all he did. “I never went out. Never partied. And then by the time I was 18, I was almost in Formula 1,” he revealed. However, his former McLaren teammate Carlos Sainz disagrees with this dreary perception.

F1 drivers are the embodiment of the word resilience. From Oscar Piastri leaving his family and country behind at 14 to Zhou Guanyu doing the same at 12, making sacrifices is a part of them. However, Carlos Sainz, who has come into his own in 2024, doesn’t prefer the term ‘sacrifice’. After all, they are racing cars for a living. In an interview with GQ, the Spaniard contradicted his close friend Norris’ view of such ‘sacrifices’.

“To be honest, Hector (interviewer), I don’t see it as a sacrifice. I don’t like the word sacrifice because I see it as something you don’t feel like doing or something you have to stop doing, to sacrifice,” he said. “I see it as a very aggressive word for what we, as drivers or athletes, do. In the end, I see it more as an investment. I have invested in what I am now,” he added, explaining his perception. “I have invested my time and my effort, I have invested in my training, I have gone to training instead of going to parties, I have gone to the simulator instead of staying at home and resting.”

Elaborating on how cool his profession actually is, Sainz said, “I think I’m lucky and I’ve been lucky to be able to dedicate myself since I was little to what I like the most, to what I find most fun in the world, which is going to races, being with racing people, smelling tires, gasoline. And therefore, nothing I’ve done and invested in until now I’ve seen as a sacrifice, but rather as an investment to be a better athlete and a better driver now,” he concluded.

It is this attitude that has made him a 3-time Grand Prix winner and the top pick in the 2025 driver market. Though he doesn’t feel the way Norris described their life, spending a full year at Ferrari knowing they don’t value him enough is a different kind of lonely.

Carlos Sainz left with a “strange feeling” in his heart after Lewis Hamilton’s announcement

Witnessing Lewis Hamilton drive for Ferrari was his father, Anthony’s “ultimate dream”. While his family celebrated the contract announcement in February, Carlos Sainz, who was living his dream, got a rude awakening. Ferrari had finally made progress after Frederic Vasseur’s arrival as team boss, bringing a “95%” revamped car into 2024. Unfortunately, the Spaniard couldn’t relish it knowing what awaits him – most probably, a drive with a midfield team in 2025.

“The truth is that the year started in a complicated way,” the 29-year-old told GQ. “The news and announcement of my non-renewal and Hamilton’s arrival at Ferrari already put a strange feeling at the beginning of the year, knowing that it is already going to be my last year at Ferrari.”

All is not lost for Sainz. A direct swap with Hamilton for the Mercedes seat is still an option provided Max Verstappen stays at Red Bull. Earlier, Mercedes boss Toto Wolff’s top choice was F2 prodigy Andrea Kimi Antonelli. But the young Italian doesn’t know if he’ll be “ready” for F1 next year. The summer break after the upcoming Belgian GP will be a game-changer. Announcements for the available seats, including Sergio Perez’s under-threat RBR seat, are expected. Hopefully, Sainz gets what he truly deserves – a championship-winning car made by a championship-winning squad.