Carlos Sainz shares the ‘good thing’ about being Alex Albon’s Williams teammate that he never had with Charles Leclerc

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Very few drivers on the Formula 1 grid have had as many teammates as Carlos Sainz.

Carlos Sainz made his debut in 2015 alongside Max Verstappen at Toro Rosso, before coming up against Pierre Gasly and the formidable Nico Hulkenberg at Renault.

Lando Norris entered F1 at McLaren alongside the Spaniard before Sainz joined Ferrari and came up against Charles Leclerc.

In four seasons together, Leclerc had the slightest edge over the Spaniard, and that ultimately led Sainz to be replaced by Lewis Hamilton going into this season.

The 30-year-old had plenty of options on the table for 2025, and Guenther Steiner has suggested Sainz might regret not signing for Sauber.

He eventually ended up at Williams with Alex Albon as his most recent partner-in-crime on the grid.

Albon has the upper hand over Sainz this season, outscoring him by 33 points in the drivers’ championship so far this year.

However, Sainz has now explained why his relationship with Albon is already very different to when he was at Ferrari with Leclerc.

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

Carlos Sainz says he’s more ‘honest’ with Alex Albon than any other F1 teammate

It was put to Sainz on the High Performance Podcast that he and Albon don’t need to be at loggerheads to get the best out of each other like other driver pairings on the grid.

He explained: “It is, but don’t underestimate that even Alex and myself, when we put the helmet on, we want to beat each other as much as any other teammates on the grid.

“It’s just when we take our helmets off, we sit in that meeting, and we give feedback about the car. The good thing that we manage to do is leave the ego aside, leave your personal interests aside and say, ‘How do we make this car quicker as soon as possible?’

“Again, it’s everything, as soon as possible, and for that, I’m more honest than I would be with him or other teammates about what I feel about the car, and he’s more honest with me about the past of the car, and where the car has ended up.

“Out of the car, we’re very honest and the most open we’ve been with any other teammate, I think.

“We’re both at the level of maturity where we know probably we can afford that for our medium-term success.

“We both feel comfortable in the Williams environment. We both feel comfortable enough to feel Alex, Carlos. This is the shortest path to making a podium, winning a race. So, let’s do it that way.”

READ MORE: Williams star Alex Albon’s life outside F1 with net worth, girlfriend to parents

Carlos Sainz explains what was so ‘exhausting’ about being Max Verstappen’s teammate

Sainz and Albon have a common goal in mind at Williams, with the upcoming regulation changes in 2026, the sole focus for team principal James Vowles.

It’s a very different dynamic from when Sainz first entered F1 a decade ago with Toro Rosso.

Verstappen and Sainz both had something to prove when they were promoted into the sport by Red Bull, knowing that a seat in the senior team was the ultimate goal.

Sainz called being Verstappen’s teammate ‘exhausting’ as they were pushing each other to their limits even during practice sessions.

The Dutchman eventually came out on top and earned the promotion to Red Bull in 2016, winning on his debut after stepping into Daniil Kvyat’s seat.

Sainz was already preparing for his next step in Formula 1 with Renault, and now his aim has to be returning to the podium once again with Williams.