Carlos Sainz's father speaks out on Ferrari replacing son with Lewis Hamilton

Carlos Sainz's father and two-time World Rally champion, Carlos Sainz Sr, has spoken out about Ferrari replacing his son with F1 champion Lewis Hamilton.

Through no fault of his own, Sainz found himself without a seat last year when it was announced seven-time world champion Hamilton would be joining Ferrari.

After one of F1's most chaotic silly season's, Sainz eventually settled on Williams, where the Spaniard has fared better than Hamilton in 2025, claiming two podiums to the Brit's zero.

Both Sainz and his father have refused to speak ill of Hamilton, however, with the rally star being asked about the switch in a recent interview with El Desmarque.

"It's not our problem, or Carlos'. Ferrari was close to winning the constructors' championship in 2024; this year they've had difficulties," Sainz Sr summarised.

"But my recommendation, and Carlos agrees, is that he focus on his own thing . This world is complicated enough without worrying about everyone else. Let people draw their own conclusions."

'Carlos Sainz can become a world champion'

Naturally, being Sainz's father, the rally legend claimed his son can become world champion, but admitted the car and the circumstances would have to be right to make this a reality.

"I have a lot of confidence and I want to believe so," he explained.

"It's only natural that I think that; I'm his father and I've been with him. I know the ability and the talent he has. And I think he does have the talent to achieve it.

"He has to be in the right place at the right time; everything has to align perfectly. I think he's fighting and working hard to try and achieve it."

"Unfortunately, I don't have a crystal ball and I can't know, with this radical change coming to F1, how the different teams have done their homework. It all depends on two factors: the engine and the chassis . And it's very difficult to know.

"I'd like to think that Williams will build a good car and that they'll be fighting for podiums. As things stand, they could be at the bottom, in the middle, or at the top of the standings. Logically, the stronger teams, when there's a change in regulations, have more resources and means to be higher up."

READ MORE: The F1 legend that got 'told off' over Top Gear appearance

Related

More F1 news

Latest F1 news

Lewis Hamilton's F1 team-mate urges Ferrari to 'annoy' Mercedes at Japanese Grand Prix

• 48 minutes ago

F1 News Today: FIA announce Lewis Hamilton punishment verdict as major changes revealed at Japanese Grand Prix

• 2 hours ago

FIA announce Lewis Hamilton punishment verdict after Max Verstappen incident at Japanese Grand Prix

• Today 09:49

Kim Kardashian at the Japanese Grand Prix? F1 fans think private jet update provides big clue

• Yesterday 21:56

Adrian Newey defence of Max Verstappen surfaces after media explosion: 'He's misunderstood'

• 1 hour ago

Channel 4 F1 highlights today: How to watch the 2026 Japanese Grand Prix FREE

• 3 hours ago