Carlos Sainz’s father shares his thoughts on his son's “very special” maiden Williams podium

Carlos Sainz Sr. was ecstatic after his son Carlos Sainz achieved a podium with Williams at the Azerbaijan GP last weekend. The 31-year-old had a torrid start to his F1 chapter with the Grove-based squad, before qualifying strongly for the race in Baku en route to claiming a podium.

Sainz joined Williams in 2025 after spending the past four years in Maranello. There, he claimed four race wins and 25 podiums and ended his journey with the Scuderia on a high after winning multiple races last year.

However, he had to make way for Lewis Hamilton, prompting his move to Williams. This switch seemed to be a backwards move on the grid, as the British team had been a consistent backmarker in the past few years.

But the 2025 challenger readied up by Williams showcased promise in the initial phase of the season. Though it was unable to transfer onto Sainz's side of the garage, this issue was also dealt with at the Azerbaijan GP, where the Spaniard claimed a front row start and finished on the podium on Sunday.

So, reflecting on his son's impressive performance in Baku, Sainz Sr. told AS:

"It’s an excellent result, especially because it wasn’t thanks to yellow flags, a safety car, or rain. This podium finish comes from some good decisions with the tires, etc. But anyway, as I was talking to him yesterday, now he has to turn the page, focus on the next Grand Prix, and try to have a strong finish to the season. Now it’s time to keep learning, stay motivated, and continue being a team player with Williams. In the meantime, he waits for next year to have a good car with all the regulation changes." "He chased it, and after a bad run, the sun always comes out a little."

The 31-year-old's fortune in the 2025 F1 season switched up at the Azerbaijan GP after 16 sub-optimal race weekends that had tainted his start to his current campaign.

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"A life lesson": Carlos Sainz on his incredible Azerbaijan GP after a subpar initial phase of the 2025 season

Carlos Sainz enjoying with Williams' pit crew after the 2025 F1 Grand Prix of Azerbaijan - Source: Getty

Carlos Sainz arrived at Williams with the experience of making over 200 race starts, along with winning multiple races in the past few years. However, the start to his 2025 tale was not the one he had anticipated.

More often than not, the dismal race weekends he endured were down to things beyond his control. But the dark clouds finally cleared over the skies for the 31-year-old in Baku. This led Sainz to admit that it is a life lesson for him to keep moving forward in the darkest of times, as he said (via F1's official website):

"Life sometimes brings you those bad moments to give you a very nice one, and this tastes much better than anything I was expecting... A life lesson – to keep believing, to keep trusting the team around you, your procedures and everything around you, because sooner or later, it always pays off."

Carlos Sainz's podium in Azerbaijan helped Williams tip off the 100-point mark for the first time since 2016, while Alex Albon has been the lead point scorer for the team, contributing 70 points to the tally so far.

Edited by Geetansh Pasricha