Carlos Sainz expressed his exasperation with rumors linking him to Audi’s Formula 1 project for 2026 and beyond, labeling them as totally invented.
Carlos Sainz’s current contract with Ferrari runs until the end of the 2024 F1 season, but rumors have been linking the Spaniard with a move to join Audi’s F1 efforts for 2026 and beyond.
That is most probably due to the links his father, rally legend Carlos Sainz Sr., has with the German company as he takes part in their Dakar program, most recently racing in the 2023 instalment of the race and retiring after a crash and suffering a broken back.
But Sainz Jr. – on his third season with Ferrari – has moved to deny these reports claiming he sees himself in Red for many years.
“My intention is to stay at Ferrari for many years,” the Ferrari driver said. “I don’t understand why they are talking about 2026, when I currently don’t even have a contract for 2025.
“It annoys me that these totally invented rumors come out,” the winner of one grand prix, the 2022 British Grand Prix, insisted.
Sainz had a decent start for his career at Maranello, beating teammate Charles Leclerc in 2021, but has struggled to match the Monegasque in 2022 with the new generation of ground effect F1 cars, and while he improved over the course of the season taking his first win and pole position at Silverstone, the situation within the team worsened with reliability problems and strategy errors.
Start of the 2023 F1 season not easy
In 2023, Ferrari have moved backward instead of improving, their SF-23 still suffering from the chronic tyre wear problems that marred its predecessor the F1-75, and with Aston Martin improving massively, the Scuderia has another challenge to deal with aside from chasing Red Bull, as Mercedes are yet to recover.
“It wasn’t an easy start, everyone at Ferrari expected something more after fighting for pole and for victories last year,” Sainz said of the start of his 2023 F1 campaign.
“We were surprised by how fast Red Bull is, and the improvement of other teams, such as Aston Martin,” he pointed out. “A lot of work is needed at the factory in Maranello to return to fight for the podium and the win, that’s the goal.
“I go to every race with the intention of winning, maximizing the points and improving; and without the penalty in Australia, we would have twelve more points,” the 28-year-old, speaking at an event for sponsor Estrella Galica 0,0, maintained.
Sainz is currently fifth in the 2023 F1 Drivers Standings with 20 points having finished fourth in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. He was on to a strong fifth in Melbourne, but a controversial penalty for clashing with Fernando Alonso on the second race restart meant he was classified 12th.