It’s no secret that Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz needs to find a new driver for the 2025 Formula 1 season.
Ferrari announced before the 2024 campaign had even begun that Carlos Sainz would be replaced by Lewis Hamilton next year.
Speaking on the F1 Nation Podcast, Sky Sports presenter Natalie Pinkham was talking about the three-time race winner’s future.
Sainz is arguably the strongest available option on the driver market right now and understandably several teams would love to acquire his services.
The two frontrunning manufacturers at this stage are Sauber – soon to be Audi – and Williams, who F1Oversteer understands are in line to sign Sainz.
Pinkham has shared that she would love to see Sainz partner Alex Albon at Williams in 2025.
It would be one of the strongest driver line-ups on the grid even if Williams only have a car capable of scoring points on one occasion so far this season.
READ MORE: Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz’s life outside F1 from full name, girlfriend and height
Natalie Pinkham would love Carlos Sainz to partner Williams driver Alex Albon
There are very few scenarios where a driver of Carlos Sainz’s calibre in the form that he’s in deserves to be losing his seat at the end of the year.
He was the first driver this season to end Max Verstappen’s dominance in Spain and has matched teammate Charles Leclerc throughout the season, although unfortunately, they both recorded identical results in Canada.
However, Frederic Vasseur was offered the chance to sign seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton and as a result, Sainz had to go.
The Spaniard has driven like someone desperate to end up in a top seat but unfortunately, that hasn’t worked out for the 29-year-old.
Mercedes still have a slot available for him but Toto Wolff is set on giving Kimi Antonelli a very early start in F1 next year.
This means that Williams and Audi are the two teams with the best chance of signing Sainz.
Pinkham has admitted that the idea of Sainz and Albon driving together for Williams would be terrific.
It does leave Audi in a difficult position as they’ve been courting Sainz for some time, but another driver has recently come up on the market who could partner Nico Hulkenberg next year.
READ MORE: Williams driver Alex Albon’s life outside F1 from net worth, girlfriend to parents
Carlos Sainz has Williams or Audi decision to make
Asked if she was managing Carlos Sainz and it was a choice between Audi or Williams, Pinkham said: “I quite like the romantic notion of going back to making Williams great again.
“I really like the idea of Carlos [Sainz] and Alex [Albon] partnering up because I think they’ll work really well together.
“It’s a tough one isn’t it, it’s a tough call to make. How much of it goes on relationships?
“James Vowles has obviously worked with some incredible drivers at Mercedes, Lewis Hamilton being one of them and he’s an astute guy, perhaps that’s a big draw for Carlos knowing about James’s big intentions and ambitions for the team.
“I believe him, I buy into his dream, his long-term goal for Williams, but then Audi’s the same.
“Andreas Seidl is a great guy, they obviously worked together at McLaren didn’t they and I gather they got on very well there.”
READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Williams Racing from team principal to Mercedes relationship
It’s a harrowing thought for Sainz that he has to choose between two teams who have a combined two points between them this season.
However, Albon is a much stronger driver than the current Williams and alongside Sainz could comfortably lift them into the midfield battle.
It almost certainly spells the end of Logan Sargeant’s time in Formula 1.
Another crash on Sunday during wet conditions in Montreal did his hopes of staying on the grid no good whatsoever.
The post ‘Really like the idea’: Natalie Pinkham would love Carlos Sainz to partner with 230-point F1 driver in 2025 appeared first on F1 Oversteer.