Carlos Sainz Jr

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Born in Madrid, Sainz is the son of two-time World Rally Champion Carlos Sainz. Graduating from karting to junior formulae in 2010, Sainz won his first championship at the Formula Renault NEC in 2011 with Koiranen, finishing runner-up to Robin Frijns in the Eurocup that year. In 2012, Sainz contested British Formula 3, the Formula 3 Euro Series and FIA European Formula 3 with Carlin. Sainz progressed to the GP3 Series with Arden in 2013, finishing tenth in his rookie season. He then found success in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series, winning the championship in 2014 with DAMS. A member of the Red Bull Junior Team since 2010, Sainz signed with Toro Rosso in 2015, debuting alongside Max Verstappen. He remained at Toro Rosso until the 2017 United States Grand Prix, where he replaced Jolyon Palmer at Renault, having already signed with the team from 2018 onwards. Sainz moved to McLaren in 2019, ending his association with Red Bull. He took his maiden podium at the Brazilian Grand Prix that year, followed by another at the Italian Grand Prix in 2020. Sainz signed for Ferrari in 2021, replacing Sebastian Vettel to partner Charles Leclerc. After a winless debut season for Ferrari, Sainz took his maiden pole position and win at the British Grand Prix in 2022. He took further wins for Ferrari at Singapore in 2023, as well as Australia and Mexico City in 2024. Replaced by Lewis Hamilton for 2025, Sainz joined Williams to partner Alexander Albon, claiming two podiums at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and the Qatar Grand Prix. As of the 2026 Dutch Grand Prix, Sainz has achieved four race wins, six pole positions, four fastest laps and 29 podiums in Formula One. Sainz is contracted to remain at Williams until at least the end of the 2027 season.

In Their Own Story

The engine note of the V6 turbo-hybrid screamed through the Monza chicane, a chaotic symphony that Carlos Sainz Jr. had learned to navigate by instinct rather than fear. In the Toro Rosso cockpit, the steering wheel felt like an extension of his own nervous system, vibrating with data and heat. Beside him in the garage, Verstappen's setup notes lay open on the table, a testament to their shared struggle against pace. The race wasn't a victory; it never was against the silver arrows that day. But as he crossed the line in seventh place, the radio crackled with a calm confirmation from the engineers: 'Good job, Carlos.' It wasn't the roar of a win, but for a driver in a midfield car, every point was a fortress defended. He pulled into the pit lane, the smell of burnt rubber and high-octane fuel filling his helmet, knowing he had done exactly what the Red Bull machine demanded: extract the impossible from the possible.

Reader's Guide

Sainz drove for Scuderia Toro Rosso in the 2015 season where he partnered Max Verstappen, following Daniil Kvyat's promotion to Red Bull. Sainz selected 55 as his race number. He qualified inside the top ten for his debut, the Australian Grand Prix, and finished the race in ninth position. He scored points again at the Malaysian Grand Prix, but failed to score at the Chinese Grand Prix after spinning and then retired from the Bahrain Grand Prix with a wheel issue. He qualified fifth at the Spanish Grand Prix, his highest grid position of the year, and finished the race ninth. He was forced to start the Monaco Grand Prix from the pit lane after failing to attend the weigh-bridge during qualifying. He recovered to tenth place in the race. Four consecutive retirements began with electrical failures at the Austrian and British Grands Prix, then a fuel pressure issue at the Hungarian Grand Prix and a power unit issue at the Belgian Grand Prix. A 150 km/h and 46 g impact into the barriers during practice for the Russian Grand Prix resulted in Sainz spending the night in hospital. He missed qualifying but was declared fit to race, however he failed to finish after a brake failure. He crashed in qualifying for the United States Grand Prix and started from last place, but gained ten positions on the first lap and went on to record his best finish of the year with seventh place. Sainz finished his debut season fifteenth in the Drivers' Championship, scoring 18 points to teammate Verstappen's 49.

Did You Know?

• Sainz is the son of two-time World Rally Champion Carlos Sainz.
• He won the Formula Renault 3.5 Series championship in 2014 with DAMS.
• Sainz took his maiden Formula One win at the 2022 British Grand Prix.
• He has kept a star on his helmet since 2014 in honor of María de Villota.