Champion makes Ferrari F1 DEBUT in emotional Carlos Sainz farewell

Carlos Sainz, Ferrari, Abu Dhabi, 2024 — Photo: © IMAGO

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Champion makes Ferrari DEBUT in emotional Sainz farewell

A champion has finally been spotted driving a Ferrari F1 car

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Tuesday 17 December 2024 20:58

A motorsport champion has made their Ferrari debut after an emotional farewell for Carlos Sainz at the team.

The Spaniard was displaced from Ferrari following the signing of Lewis Hamilton for 2025, despite Sainz’s excellent results during his time at the Scuderia.

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Sainz was the only non-Red Bull driver to produce a race win in 2023, and earned a further two impressive victories during the 2024 season.

His win in Australia remains one of the standout victories of the year, after Sainz underwent surgery on his appendix two weeks prior to the race.

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Carlos Sainz enjoys special farewell with Ferrari

Nevertheless, Sainz will have to make way for the seven-time world champion, in a replacement decision that he recently revealed left him feeling ‘hurt’.

Despite the snub, the 30-year-old has maintained a positive relationship with the team, as he prepares to move to Williams for 2025.

Carlos Sainz made his Williams debut at the Abu Dhabi tyre test

Ferrari paid tribute to Sainz’s time with the team in an emotional farewell surprise, not just for Sainz, but also his father, Carlos Sainz Sr.

Sainz Sr is best known for winning the World Rally Championship in 1990 and 1992, where he cemented himself as a motorsport legend, and is still racing to this day, winning the 2024 Dakar Rally for the fourth time.

During his career, Sainz Sr has driven for several iconic motorsport names including Ford, Toyota and Audi, but one name remains absent from the list - Ferrari.

However, this was rectified in Sainz Jr’s farewell with the team at Fiorano, Ferrari's private test circuit, where both Sainz Sr and Jr took to the track in Ferrari F1 cars.

Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur was also present for the drive, where the team bid an emotional goodbye to Sainz at the track.

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A post shared by Carlos Sainz (@carlossainz55)

Written by

Sheona Mountford - F1 Journalist

Sheona Mountford is a motorsport journalist specialising in F1. As a writer and contributor, she covers a wide range of motorsport series from F1 to F1 Academy, responsible for breaking news, live race coverage and in depth analysis of the sport and the culture around it.

View full biography

F1 Red Bull Lewis Hamilton Ferrari Carlos Sainz