Carlos Sainz

Driver profile

Born in Madrid, Spain, Sainz entered F1 in 2015 and has raced for Toro Rosso, Renault, McLaren, Ferrari and Williams. In 2026 he drives Williams’ number 55 car alongside Albon. He competes in a different discipline from his father, the world rally champion of the same name; his F1 profile must not include his father’s WRC or Dakar results.

Early development and progression

Sainz reached F1 through the Red Bull junior programme and partnered Verstappen as a rookie. Subsequent moves exposed him to different power suppliers, engineering organisations and car characteristics. That career provides substantial comparative experience, but every change still requires adaptation. Moving to McLaren in 2019, joining Ferrari in 2021 and arriving at Williams in 2025 mark three key changes in his professional role.

Career timeline

2015—2017Entered F1 with Toro Rosso before moving to Renault.
2019—2020Raced for McLaren, helping restore its competitiveness and scoring podiums.
2021—2022Joined Ferrari, taking his first pole and first win at the 2022 British Grand Prix.
2023—2024Won the Singapore Grand Prix in 2023 and the Australian and Mexican Grands Prix in 2024.
2025—2026Moved to Williams and took two podiums in 2025; continued contributing to the team’s rebuilding in 2026.

2026 season snapshot

The following figures were checked against official F1 pages on 2026-9-23. They are a snapshot, not live standings or the final season result.

Season position: Position 16
Season points: 6
Official Grand Prix count: 14
Grand Prix wins: 0
Grand Prix podiums: 0
Grand Prix poles: 0
Sprint points: 0
Sprint wins: 0

Season points already include Sprint points and must not be added again. Grand Prix and Sprint wins are listed separately; the season position here and historical honours at the top have different statistical scopes.

Landmark race: the 2023 Singapore Grand Prix

Starting from pole in Singapore and holding off the cars behind, Sainz became the only driver to win a Grand Prix for a team other than Red Bull in 2023. His management of pace and gaps makes that victory especially valuable for understanding strategy. It also shows that a defining performance need not come in the fastest car over a season: a particular circuit, team execution and driver judgement can combine to create an opportunity, but that opportunity should not automatically be taken as evidence of season-long strength.

How to read the racing

At Williams, Sainz should not be judged by Ferrari-era expectations of fighting for wins. More appropriate measures include his gap to Albon, consistency within tyre stints and ability to turn experience across teams into development feedback. Several team moves mean a rich career, not immediate adaptation to every new car; early performances should be considered alongside the subsequent trend.

This section is editorial interpretation based on career history and racing patterns, intended to help viewers understand the action. It does not represent published team setup or telemetry findings.

Results and statistical scope

Within the statistical scope used on this page, the record as of verification comprises 243 Grand Prix entries, 1342.5 points, 4 Grand Prix wins, 29 podiums in the official count, 6 poles and 0 drivers’ world titles. The best finish is position 1 (4 times).

Career figures include results from previous teams, rather than belonging only to the current team. Grand Prix entries are not the same as actual starts or finishes. Cumulative points are affected by changes to scoring systems over the years and are unsuitable as a standalone basis for ranking drivers across eras.

Is he the same person as rally driver Carlos Sainz?

No. The F1 driver is the son; his father is a rally driver with the same name. Their disciplines, championships and competition records are counted separately.

Last verified: 2026-09-23