“It has happened in all of Sainz's teams, now it happens the same with Ferrari”

Jacques Villeneuve is one of the strongest defenders of the two Spanish drivers on the grid: Fernando Alonso and Carlos Sainz. The former Canadian driver has highlighted the qualities of both on numerous occasions and, after the podium achieved by the Madrilenian in Baku, he has not missed the opportunity to do so again.

The now Williams driver completed, in the opinion of the 1997 world champion with that same team, “an incredible weekend and was close to pole. But then he drove well in the race, survived, and kept fighting for the podium. He has always been a very mature and strong driver. He has often been criticized for his lack of pace, which is not true.”

“Now he is seen as the team builder, as a great addition, and he is very well-liked there.”

But what Jacques Villeneuve emphasizes the most is Carlos Sainz's mental strength, who does not let himself be carried away by the pressure of competition, nor by poor results.

“He has shown that, in a pressure race, he is a calm guy,” he adds in statements to OLBG. “He has total control, his voice is calm, he thinks, he does not let himself be overwhelmed by what happens around him.” And seeing the season he has had, which has been tough, it does not seem to have affected him.

“It has probably consumed him. Probably, it has been too exhausting. But, in some way, he is always there, he always comes back for more, which is a great quality.” he reiterated.

Carlos Sainz makes teams better

Another quality attributed to Carlos Sainz is his ability to improve the teams he is part of. The truth is that both McLaren and Ferrari improved during his time at both. And now it seems to be happening the same with Williams.

“If we look at his trajectory, when he joins a new team, it has taken him some time, maybe half a season, to get into the rhythm,” reflects Villeneuve. “He works hard. But during that period, he manages to make the whole team function better.”

“That is what has happened in all the teams he has joined. And at some point, he often had a teammate who was only a few hundredths faster. But that teammate was also faster thanks to Sainz's work.” continues the now television commentator and F1 analyst.

“But then Sainz became faster than his teammate. Even if we look at Leclerc, Leclerc was not ahead of Sainz at Ferrari, as many people want to believe.” he argues next. “And every time he left a team, that team went downhill. Always. And now the same is happening with Ferrari.”

Sainz will not leave Williams

There has been much talk about the possibility of Carlos Sainz leaving Williams if he receives an offer from a top team like Mercedes or Red Bull, even Ferrari if Hamilton does not improve.

But, in Montoya's opinion, “Williams will continue to improve little by little; Sainz will think twice before leaving the ship.” No, Williams has not made a turnaround because it has been a slow and gradual improvement. Lately, Sainz has shown that he was at the level, but there was always something that was failing, like in Zandvoort.

“But if you don’t get rid of the toys, everything will be fine. Right now, all this effort is starting to pay off,” he adds, convinced that Williams is on the rise. “Sainz must be very happy with what is happening at Williams. Because now he is seen as the team builder, as a great addition, and he is very well-liked there. So if you are going to leave the ship, you have to think twice.”