Carlos Sainz delivers surprising assessment amid F1 struggles

Carlos Sainz has claimed he is enjoying one of his strongest seasons in F1 despite Williams’ struggles near the lower end of the competitive order.

The Grove-based squad had long viewed the 2026 regulation reset as an opportunity to make a significant step forward and challenge higher up the grid.

However, Williams instead produced a car that was overweight and lacking downforce compared to many of its rivals.

Sainz has secured three ninth-place finishes this season, but the team’s current position is a far cry from its strong 2025 campaign, when it finished fifth in the constructors’ standings.

While Williams continues to work through its difficulties, Sainz believes his own performances rank among the strongest of his career.

“I am having a very solid year,” Sainz told media including RacingNews365.

“If you go back all the way to Australia in free practice, before I had the issue in quali that I couldn't go out and in the race with the front wing, every single race this year I've been on it.

“I've been doing so far, one of my strongest years, probably in F1.”

Sainz has had the stronger season so far at Williams and currently leads team-mate Alex Albon on all head-to-head metrics.

However, Sainz acknowledged that his strong performances are being masked due to not competing towards the front of the field.

“I'm very happy with my engineering team, the way we're approaching the year, the way we're keeping motivation up, even if we're not fighting for much,” he said.

“We're still maximising every race, every point-scoring situation that we've had, with quali. 

“So I'm proud of that. Unfortunately, F1 is a very tough sport, because if you're not fighting for points or top fives or podiums, people don't really focus on it, because everyone looks at the top 10 or the top five. 

“It's a good year for me so far, but it's true that you will not shine very much if you're not in the top 10.”