Carlos Sainz’s indecisiveness over his 2025 System 1 future has reportedly incited Williams to contemplate different candidates for its accessible seat alongside Alex Albon for subsequent season.
Preliminary frontrunners Williams and Audi/Sauber have gives on the desk for the outgoing Ferrari driver’s providers.
Nonetheless, Sainz has been drawn on the final hour into negotiations with Alpine, a transfer orchestrated by the French outfit’s just lately appointed govt advisor, Flavio Briatore.
Based on Motorsport.com, Briatore is working behind the scenes to safe a provide of Mercedes engines for the Enstone squad for 2026, a transfer in line with Alpine’s reported need to ditch its personal in-house F1 engine growth programme.
Nonetheless, Sainz hesitancy has annoyed each Williams and Sauber/Audi. Whereas the latter is keen to attend a bit longer, the Grove-based outfit has reignited talks with different drivers, with Esteban Ocon and Valtteri Bottas believed to be on the high of Williams workforce boss James Vowles quick record.
Each drivers are clearly well-acquainted with Vowles, having labored with the previous Mercedes strategist throughout their time on the Brackley squad.
However Williams’ precedence is to recruit a confirmed race winner totally invested within the workforce’s long-term challenge. Sainz’s hesitation has forged doubt on his dedication, prompting Vowles to discover alternate options.
In Austria this weekend, Ocon downplayed rumors linking him solely to Haas. The Frenchman hinted at different potential locations for his 2025 season.
“There are, sure, many choices however I cannot touch upon what precedence,” he stated, emphasizing his need to seal a deal as quickly as potential moderately than threat being despatched to the sidelines for ready too lengthy as was the case in 2018.
“We without charge need to dwell that once more, for certain. It is going properly for the time being, there’s a variety of deep discussions happening and it needs to be sorted quickly hopefully.”
Bottas anticipated final weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix – the place it was anticipated that Sainz would announce a cope with Williams – to deliver extra readability to the motive force market.
With this not being the case, the Finn has dug in along with his administration to weigh his choices.
“I hoped there can be selections made earlier this week however deadlines bought pushed again once more,” he stated.
“On my days off, I have been energetic with my administration, with totally different groups, together with this workforce [Sauber] clearly,” he stated.
“So yeah, form of ready for a chunk to fall into a spot after which it ought to all occur fairly fast.”Whereas he waits for the following domino to fall, Bottas says he has a “fairly clear” image of the place he want to be racing subsequent 12 months.
“Completely. I’ve bought my precedence and my order, which I can not let you know,” he stated. “However yeah, for me, it is fairly clear what I would like.”
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