F1 team boss could lose his job after failing to sign Carlos Sainz

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Carlos Sainz is still deciding on his next destination as he prepares to leave Ferrari at the end of the season. The story has become a saga, with the Spaniard unwilling to commit to any one suitor.

Williams were preparing to announce Sainz at his home race in Barcelona. The F1 paddock was ‘certain’ that confirmation was imminent, but he hesitated at the last moment.

This may have been the result of an improved offer from Alpine. The team’s new advisor Flavio Briatore told Sainz that they may be using Mercedes engines come 2026, and that made them a more attractive proposition than fellow customers Williams in his eyes.

As such, it was looking like Alpine would be Sainz’s ‘new home’. But then there were indications over the Silverstone weekend that Mercedes have cooled on Kimi Antonelli.

Antonelli has been the overwhelming favourite to replace Lewis Hamilton, filling the most coveted vacancy on the grid. But his low-key campaign in F2 has brought Sainz back into contention.

It looks as if he doesn’t want to sign for a midfield team until he knows for sure that he can’t get a frontrunning seat. He’s even held out hope that Red Bull will ‘fall apart’, prompting Max Verstappen to leave, but that looks unlikely.

Andreas Seidl could lose Sauber job after Carlos Sainz rejection

One team he has seemingly ruled out is Audi. It’s recently been reported that Sainz has cancelled negotiations with Sauber ahead of the German manufacturer’s 2026 takeover.

This is one of the reasons that ‘trouble is brewing’ behind the scenes in Ingolstadt, according to Auto Action. CEO Andreas Seidl and Chief Representative Oliver Hoffman are trying to ‘get rid of each other’.

There’s a great deal of frustration over the failure to find a desirable partner for Nico Hulkenberg. With Sainz looking elsewhere, backup target Esteban Ocon is set to join Haas.

They can’t even turn back to the incumbent Valtteri Bottas either, because he’s seemingly headed for Williams. This could potentially force them to hire an unproven young driver.

Hoffman intends to oust Seidl and bring in Mike Krack from Aston Martin to replace him. Meanwhile, the former McLaren man is pressuring the board to axe Hoffman instead, enabling him to absorb his powers.

Giedo van der Garde says 2026 Audi engine could be a ‘cannon’

Audi will be starting from arguably the lowest base possible. The Sauber team are bottom of the constructors’ championship, having failed to score a single point.

Their fortunes could improve in 2025, but a marked upturn is unlikely. That’s because there will only be very limited changes to the regulations over the winter.

Former F1 driver Giedo van der Garde is at least optimistic about the Audi engine. He expects them to produce a ‘cannon’ given the scale of their operation.

The greater challenge will be building a chassis on the same level as their competitors right at the outset. Internally, Audi hope to be challenging for titles by 2031.