Carlos Sainz showed his class with his response to beating Lewis Hamilton’s 2025 podium tally

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Very few Formula 1 fans would have predicted that Carlos Sainz would finish the 2025 Formula 1 season with more podium finishes than his replacement at Ferrari, Lewis Hamilton.

Hopes were very high for Lewis Hamilton going into this year, especially as Ferrari came so close to winning the constructors’ championship last season.

What has transpired is one of the most disappointing campaigns in Ferrari’s recent memory, as they finished fourth in the standings behind a dominant McLaren, Hamilton’s former team, Mercedes, and a Red Bull outfit that relied on Max Verstappen to score more than 90% of their points.

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Team principal Fred Vasseur heads into 2026 under pressure, and the Scuderia know how important it is that they nail the new regulations to avoid another crisis.

On the flip side, Carlos Sainz’s new team, Williams, finished directly behind Ferrari in the championship, albeit 261 points worse off.

The Spaniard took some time to get up to speed at his new team, but Sainz was fantastic after the summer break, becoming the first Williams driver to score multiple podiums in a season since 2015.

The 31-year-old was asked about beating Hamilton’s podium tally, and his response speaks volumes about the kind of person he is.

READ MORE: Williams star Carlos Sainz’s life outside F1 from full name, girlfriend and height

Carlos Sainz ‘not satisfied at all’ that he scored more 2025 podiums than Lewis Hamilton

Sainz was asked by Marca if he was ‘satisfied’ with scoring two podiums in 2025 compared to Hamilton and said: “No, I’m satisfied with my two podiums. I’m not at all satisfied with someone else’s misfortune.

“I’m satisfied that I achieved two podiums with Williams in Baku and Qatar, and another one in the Austin Sprint, and I’m satisfied to do it when last year there were many doubts about whether I could achieve it.

“When I announced I was going to Williams, I felt that some people felt sorry for me. It was a bit of a strange feeling.

“Some journalists, social media, I don’t know, I didn’t see it that way.

“For me, it was a new chapter, another opportunity, and when I arrived here in the paddock on Tuesday for the 2024 Abu Dhabi test, wearing a white helmet and racing suit, and I got into the Williams and started working, I was only thinking about the future. Not the past.

“In the end, look, this year things have gone as well as I thought they could, and that’s what satisfies me most.”

READ MORE: Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton’s life outside F1 from net worth to family

Carlos Sainz continues incredible Formula 1 record at Williams after fourth team switch

Williams are the fifth team that Sainz has driven for in Formula 1 since his debut with Toro Rosso back in 2015.

Sainz had a very strong rookie campaign, but he was up against Max Verstappen as his teammate and unsurprisingly went under the radar.

In his career, the Spaniard has moved to Renault, McLaren, Ferrari, and now Williams, and on each occasion, the team he’s joined has improved their position in the constructors’ championship during his first year.

Sainz chose to join Williams over Sauber, now Audi, and the German manufacturing giants must be wondering if they could have done more to hire the four-time race winner.

David Coulthard has hailed Sainz as well, and while it would have been easy for him to feel bitter about losing his race seat to Hamilton after years of helping Ferrari develop, he’s once again proved that he’s capable of making the best out of any situation he’s dropped into.