29-year-old ‘moves on’ from current F1 team after 2024, he won’t be happy with terms offered

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There are going to be plenty of potential moves in the Formula 1 driver’s market in 2024 and Ferrari and Carlos Sainz’s partnership could come to an end.

With so many teams looking to improve their line-ups ahead of the 2025 season, Carlos Sainz could end up being a man in demand this year.

Speaking on The Race Podcast, journalist Scott Mitchell-Malm believes the 29-year-old might move on as he’s not sure he’ll be happy with the potential deal Ferrari offers him.

Carlos Sainz is one of the quickest drivers on the grid but never seems to get the credit he deserves.

He’s unfortunate to be up against Charles Leclerc at Ferrari who is arguably even quicker but has been very unlucky in recent seasons.

The Monegasque was Max Verstappen’s biggest rival in qualifying but simply didn’t have the car underneath him to challenge the three-time world champion during races.

However, Sainz has the bragging rights within the team of being the only driver to end Red Bull’s supremacy last year.

There have been reports that Sainz is close to a contract extension with the team and chairman John Elkann insists Ferrari’s current line-up isn’t going anywhere.

However, the terms Ferrari could offer Sainz may not be to his liking and that means he might end up deciding that the moves on offer to another team might suit him better.

It’s thought that Sainz wants one last big contract in Formula 1 right as he turns 30 this year.

He’s unlikely to be handed that at Ferrari, who are instead backing Leclerc as their long-term option.

Sainz moves on from Ferrari after 2024 – Mitchell-Malm

Speaking about the Spaniard’s future, Mitchell-Malm said: “[Carlos] Sainz though, I’m going to do a disclaimer at this point, I’m being as optimistic and interesting as possible with my thoughts about what the driver market does for 2025.

“I think Sainz moves on for 2025, I think there will be a point in the negotiations and I’m obviously teeing up a Sainz announcement in the next 48 hours or so saying this.

“There’s a point in the negotiations where Sainz realises that actually he isn’t going to get medium-to-long term out of Ferrari what he wants and he wants to be somewhere where he if he isn’t going to be top dog at Ferrari where he can fight for wins possibly in the short-term, he wants to set himself up longer-term.

“I think Ferrari would be happy to offer him a one-year deal or a one-plus-one but Sainz wants a bit more certainly than that. So, I think in the end Sainz will be minded to go elsewhere and Ferrari won’t be unhappy with that because there are some good options.”

There are several potential moves on the table for Sainz if he and Ferrari can’t come to an agreement.

Sauber is a potential option for Sainz when they become Audi in 2026 while there’s even been talk of a return to Red Bull if Sergio Perez leaves.

Becoming Audi’s number one driver when they join the grid could be a really enticing prospect for Sainz.

His father already has a relationship with the team and while that’s unlikely to sway whether they hire the 29-year-old, it won’t work against him.