Sainz backed for Mercedes move as MAJOR Audi warning issued

Former Haas F1 team principal Guenther Steiner has warned Carlos Sainz over a move to Audi given their lack of recent experience with F1 engines, as he backed the Spaniard to drive for Mercedes in 2025.

Sainz's time at Ferrari will come to an end in 2025 when Lewis Hamilton replaces the Spaniard, teaming up with Charles Leclerc.

F1 HEADLINES: Ricciardo fuelled by critics as former principal delivers HARSH verdict

READ MORE: Ferrari suffer Newey 'REJECTION' with British teams poised to swoop

Sainz is yet to commit his future to any team, as a handful of options await the 29-year-old.

Yet Steiner, who left his position as Haas team principal at the start of the year, believes that Sainz could well spend a year at Mercedes in 2025 – as he shared a word of warning regarding Audi's return to the F1 grid in 2026.

"There’s a lot of talk about Carlos going to Mercedes for a year," Steiner told The Red Flags podcast. "I think the chances he goes to Mercedes are bigger than him ending up at Red Bull.

"But I understand why Carlos is not in a hurry to make a decision. All the other teams are still waiting, Williams, Alpine, Audi is still waiting for him. So he just waits until somebody is not good enough.

"They all want to wait, these factory teams like Alpine and Audi, they want the best driver on the market.

"They know that the other ones [drivers] they can still get anyway, as until that domino falls, I don’t think anything will be moving...

"The risk with Audi [for Sainz] is higher as they’ve never made an F1 engine. Well, they did, but it was a long time ago."

READ MORE: Horner stuns Goodwood crowd with brutally honest Red Bull admission

Related

More F1 news

Latest F1 news

Ferrari F1 boss hits back at Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc

• 41 minutes ago

F1 News Today: Ferrari boss rejects Hamilton request as Leclerc could miss Spanish GP

• 2 hours ago

Ferrari F1 boss rejects Lewis Hamilton request after showdown talks

• Yesterday 18:46

Ferrari mocked by Mercedes after brutal F1 thrashing from Kimi Antonelli

• 1 hour ago

F1 News Today: Verstappen admits Mercedes and McLaren talks as Red Bull sign Raikkonen

• Yesterday 15:30

F1 star Charles Leclerc could miss Spanish GP, faces 'hardest return in sport' with FIA health test

• Yesterday 13:30