Formula 1 is racing towards the central part of the calendar. Ten races have been registered, another 14 to be played with a double in sight. While the grand prix are coming one after the other at breakneck speed, the fate of Carlos Sainz.
On the eve of each race weekend we read that the next one is the good one for the announcement. Since we are in the week of the Austrian event, we expect that it may finally be the moment of the long-awaited event. But what are the options on the Madrid table yesterday he made Charles Leclerc angry? Let's see them.
![Carlos Sainz](https://www.formulacritica.it/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Sainz-6-jpg.webp)
Carlos Sainz: five options under his belt
- The great classic: Audi-Sauber. The team that everyone considered the favorite in the race for the Spaniard with whom, at the end of 2023, he had signed a non-binding pre-contract. Maybe Carlos waited too long, maybe he pulled the string too much given that the latest dispatches say that the German-owned Swiss team has asked Liam Lawson to Red Bull to place him next to Nico Hulkenberg. The track is still beatable but seems to be much colder than a few months ago.
- The flexible: Williams. The option that few believed in but which today seems to be the most concrete. At least according to the words of James Vowles who has made no secret of working furiously to sign the twenty-nine year old from Ferrari. The Grove team, although not a technical excellence, has ambitious plans and seems to be able to guarantee a contract with a release clause that would allow Sainz to free himself at the end of 2025 to aim for more noble seats that will become free in 2026.
- The surprise: Visa Cash App. There aren't many rumors which lead to this solution, but Helmut Marko, director of the driver program of the Red Bull teams, has never hidden his esteem for Carlos who comes from the Austrian junior team. Daniel Ricciardo's lackluster performances and Audi's request to have Lawson could open the doors to the Spaniard who, by entering the Red Bull ecosystem, would be given a fast track to Milton Keynes if Sergio Perez continues to produce such terrible performances. Hypothesis not entirely far-fetched if you think about it.
- The disappointing one: Haas. It would be a downgrade total and therefore almost to be excluded. But as long as there is a team looking for a driver and a drivers awaiting a new home, every option must necessarily be taken into consideration.
- The new entry: Alpine. It's the news of the day: the team that Flavio Briatore has recently joined has set its sights on Sainz. Despite purges and rumors of divestment, Luca De Meo doesn't want to hear about demobilization. Indeed, it relaunches to be ready in the new regulatory context. And for this reason he would be looking for a consistent driver who is also good at releasing the right ones feedback to engineers. And this is confirmed by the fact that on Friday Ferrari chose Sainz and not Leclerc to test the new package which did not give wings to the SF-24. Who knows if the transalpine team is behind the constant postponements of an imminent announcement.
Crediti foto: Scuderia Ferrari HP