Carlos Sainz reveals what he told Red Bull during discussions about a potential collaboration for 2025. Earlier this year, rumors circulated that the Spaniard and Max Verstappen would not be able to work together as teammates, preventing Sainz from returning to Red Bull. According to the Madrid-born driver, this is not the case.
Lewis Hamilton announced back in February, even before a single meter had been driven for the 2024 season, that he would be moving to Ferrari. The British driver’s announcement of his switch to the Italian team left Carlos Sainz without a seat. After much deliberation, the Spaniard decided to move to Williams. However, Sainz also held discussions with his former employer, Red Bull.
The reason why there will not be a reunion between Sainz and Red Bull is reportedly partly because Max Verstappen and the Spaniard did not always get along well in the past. According to Sainz, however, things are very different now. “I think I would get along well with him. We were sixteen and nineteen then. Since then, we have matured a lot,” the Spaniard tells Auto, Motor und Sport.
In early 2016, Sainz and Max Verstappen were teammates at Red Bull’s sister team, Toro Rosso, now known as Visa RB, until the Dutchman was promoted to Red Bull during the Spanish Grand Prix. According to the Spaniard, it was in Toro Rosso’s interest that Verstappen and Sainz were fiercely competing against each other at the time.
“At Toro Rosso, they put you in a team and say: fight against each other, then we’ll see who’s the best and who gets to go to Red Bull!”, reveals the Ferrari driver. “That’s the reason Toro Rosso exists. You’re not driving together for the team championship, otherwise the behavior of the two drivers would completely change.”
Sainz also informed Red Bull
Both Sainz and Verstappen have since made it to a top team. The Madrid-born driver therefore believes that the collaboration between the two would be very different today. “You can see it with Charles (Leclerc) and Lando (Norris), my last two teammates. There were never any problems. So if my relationship with Max was the reason I didn’t end up at Red Bull, I would say there would have been no problems. If the decision depended solely on that, it would simply be wrong. But I’ve already told them that.”
