Sainz in numbers
1,343.5 official points · best championship finish: 5th in 2021
0Drivers’ titles
none
0Constructors’ titles
none
1.6% of races
2.4% of races
11.8% of races
0Drivers’ titles
none
0Constructors’ titles
none
0Drivers’ titles
none
0Constructors’ titles
none
0Drivers’ titles
none
0Constructors’ titles
none
5.4% of races with McLaren
0Drivers’ titles
none
0Constructors’ titles
none
4.5% of races with Ferrari
6.8% of races with Ferrari
28.4% of races with Ferrari
0Drivers’ titles
none
0Constructors’ titles
none
5% of races with Williams
Carlos Sainz is one of the most complete and competitive drivers on the modern grid. Son of the double rally world champion of the same name, the Madrileño reached F1 in 2015 and built his reputation at midfield teams (Toro Rosso, Renault, McLaren) always squeezing the car and going toe to toe with high-profile team-mates.
In 2021 he made the leap to Ferrari, any driver's dream, and quickly delivered: a win at Silverstone 2022, the emotional Singapore 2023 victory that ended Red Bull's winning streak, and Australia 2024, the latter just two weeks after appendix surgery, one of the most admired physical comebacks in the sport.
Edged out of Ferrari by Hamilton's arrival, in 2025 he took on the challenge of rebuilding Williams. His reliability, his wet-weather speed and his ability to adapt to very different cars make him a safe bet on the grid.
What if Sainz had another car?
We took his real attributes and put him in the best car of each era: in a real driver's seat, against the team-mate that car actually had. 20 full seasons in each.
| Car | Team-mate | Finish | Wins | Titles |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| McLaren1988 | Alain Prost-94 pts | P2 | 1.9 | 0% |
| Williams1992 | Riccardo Patrese-28 pts | P2.6 | 3.3 | 10% |
| Ferrari2002 | Rubens Barrichello-1 pts | P1.5 | 6.8 | 55% |
| Red Bull2013 | Mark Webber+11 pts | P1.4 | 8.7 | 65% |
| Mercedes2016 | Lewis Hamilton-122 pts | P2 | 3 | 5% |
| Red Bull2023 | Sergio Perez-21 pts | P1.7 | 9.8 | 30% |
| Cadillac2026 · 11th on the grid | Valtteri Bottas+12 pts | P10.7 | 0 | 0% |
The only one who beats him is Lewis Hamilton in the 2016 Mercedes: 122 points clear over a full season.
Rating by season
- First season
- 76 2015
- Peak
- 81 2024
- 2026
- 79 Williams
12 seasons in the database, from 2015 to 2026. Our own rating, from 50 to 99.
Teams
Tags
Best year
2022
What would Carlos Sainz have achieved with a different car or in a different era?
Hypotheses featuring Carlos Sainz
Related drivers
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His team-mates
7 team-mates across 12 seasons. When both finished the race, Sainz was ahead in 73 of 156; on the grid he started ahead in 114 of 247.
| Year | Team-mate | In the race | On the grid |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Max VerstappenToro Rosso · 19 races | 4-5 | 9-9 |
| 2016 | Daniil KvyatToro Rosso · 17 races | 9-2 | 10-6 |
| 2016 | Max VerstappenToro Rosso · 4 races | 1-1 | 1-3 |
| 2017 | Daniil KvyatToro Rosso · 14 races | 5-1 | 7-7 |
| 2017 | Nico HülkenbergRenault · 4 races | 0-1 | 1-3 |
| 2017 | Pierre GaslyToro Rosso · 2 races | · | 1-1 |
| 2018 | Nico HülkenbergRenault · 21 races | 4-8 | 10-11 |
| 2019 | Lando NorrisMcLaren · 21 races | 8-4 | 10-11 |
| 2020 | Lando NorrisMcLaren · 17 races | 7-6 | 8-9 |
| 2021 | Charles LeclercFerrari · 22 races | 6-14 | 8-14 |
| 2022 | Charles LeclercFerrari · 22 races | 7-7 | 6-16 |
| 2023 | Charles LeclercFerrari · 22 races | 5-9 | 8-14 |
| 2024 | Charles LeclercFerrari · 23 races | 8-12 | 9-14 |
| 2025 | Alexander AlbonWilliams · 24 races | 6-10 | 15-9 |
| 2026 | Alexander AlbonWilliams · 17 races | 3-3 | 11-6 |
The first number is always Sainz's. A team-mate is whoever started the same race for the same team. "In the race" only counts races both finished, because a retirement says nothing about who was quicker. "On the grid" is the starting position, with penalties already applied.
Compare Sainz with another driver
Titles, wins, poles and podiums side by side, against any of the 789 drivers in history.
Keep reading
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