There is still the whole season ahead, but the F1 teams have part of their attention focused on next season, a year of revolution and change in which the trading of cards between teams is an option that no team wants to lose sight of. And one of the most sought-after cards is Carlos Sainz, who could end up at Red Bull next season.
Carlos Sainz to Red Bull?
Carlos Sainz is still in the process of adapting to Williams, but there are already reports that he could be a driver for Red Bull next season. Carlos Sainz, aware that he was signing for a minor team after leaving Ferrari, has a clause that releases him in case one of the big teams wants to sign him, and Red Bull is one of them. Although the Madrid-born driver has already stated that he is happy at Williams and that he is seduced by the new project, the idea of signing for the Austrian brand, the last great dominator of F1 in recent years, seduces him.
Pending the future of Verstappen
Everything revolves around the four-time world champion: Max Verstappen has a contract with Red Bull until 2027. However, he also has a clause that could release him from his commitment to the energy brand’s team. In this sense, there are two teams fighting to sign the Dutchman, Aston Martin and Mercedes.
Max Verstappen wants to be the best driver in history, he wants to win, and if he can’t do it at Red Bull, he will look to do it with another team. And the two options he has are very ambitious. On the one hand there is Mercedes, a bet that doesn’t usually fail to fight for championships and that seems to have taken a certain advantage with next season’s engines. The other bet is Aston Martin, the team that is adding fuel to the fire to become one of the big teams in F1, and would like to put the finishing touch to its investment with the arrival of the driver to carry out the ambitious project.
But there is a third option for Verstappen, which is to finish his contract with Red Bull: this would allow him to have all the cards on the table and be able to make a safe choice for 2027. If he leaves Red Bull this summer, there is a risk that he will make the wrong choice. If he stays at Red Bull and fulfills his contract, in 2027 he will be able to choose the team he wants to race for and have more options to become world champion again, including staying at Red Bull in case they make a winning car again.
Carlos Sainz and Verstappen together?
If Verstappen continues for another year at Red Bull, Carlos Sainz will remain at Williams. It has already been leaked that one of the reasons why Red Bull has not signed the Spaniard for this season is because of the veto of Verstappen’s father. But if he leaves in 2027, he will still be one of Red Bull’s trump cards, although by that time, the movement of drivers within F1 could generate all kinds of surprises.
The chances of seeing Carlos Sainz in a leading F1 team are quite high in the next few years. The move of Verstappen and the end of the career of Fernando Alonso and of Lewis Hamilton will reopen the door for Carlos Sainz to fight for races and world championships. Now Red Bull is one of the best placed teams to sign the Madrid-born driver, but the next few years could be key for us to see Carlos Sainz back at the top of the grid. What if Williams also makes a leap forward in 2026?