Ferrari star Charles Leclerc sends message to Carlos Sainz after confirming Williams move

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After months of waiting, Carlos Sainz finally decided his next destination on the Formula 1 grid for 2025.

Carlos Sainz knew before this season even started that he would be leaving Ferrari after four years with the Italian giants.

There are only a handful of drivers who would have convinced team principal Frederic Vasseur that he should drop the 29-year-old Spaniard at the end of the current campaign.

Unfortunately for Sainz, Lewis Hamilton decided he fancied potentially ending his career with Ferrari and that meant the Spaniard losing his seat with Charles Leclerc having recently signed a new long-term deal with the team.

Sainz would have been hoping that a seat would have become available at another top team so that he could continue challenging for wins beyond the end of 2024.

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Scuderia Ferrari from team principal to factory

His performance in Australia after having his appendix removed at the previous race in Saudi Arabia highlighted his credentials.

However, it quickly became clear that he would have to look further down the paddock for his next race seat, despite the fact that Mercedes still haven’t announced a replacement for Hamilton.

Sainz eventually chose Williams and will be joining Alex Albon at the beginning of next year as Logan Sargeant’s replacement.

Vowles and Sainz had been in conversation before pen was put to paper and that would have gone some way to convincing him to join the team.

Sargent is being courted by IndyCar teams for next year as his time in Formula 1 looks set to come to an end, although Vowles has confirmed Sargeant’s immediate plans.

Leclerc has now sent Sainz a message on Instagram to say farewell to his Spanish teammate.

They’ve got 10 races left to try and challenge the other top three teams with the Constructors’ Championship still very much up for grabs.

READ MORE: Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc’s life outside F1 from net worth to girlfriend

Charles Leclerc sends message to Carlos Sainz after he confirms he’s joining Williams

Posting on social media when the news broke, Leclerc said: “Wishing you the best for your new adventure next year Chili.

“Still got half a season together to have some more special moments as teammates.”

Sainz replied to his teammate and said: “10 more races together, let’s make the most of them!”

New teammate Albon also sent Sainz a message on Instagram and said: “Welcome to the team,”, while Sainz also joked about the fact that both drivers have missed races due to surgery, calling them the “Appendix-less team.”

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

Williams need to provide F1’s strongest midfield line-up with a much better car in 2025

It’s hard to argue that Williams haven’t played an absolute blinder by pairing Sainz and Albon together next year.

Sainz is a talented race-winning driver and there’s a reason Albon was promoted to the senior Red Bull team less than two years into his Formula 1 career and circumstances went against him when trying to adapt to the pressure of racing alongside Max Verstappen.

However, Williams currently sit on four points after 14 race weekends and have only avoided sitting bottom of the Constructors’ Championship this year because Sauber have been diabolically poor.

James Vowles has big plans for the team in the future and aside from signing Sainz, has been hiring relentlessly to improve their personnel at their factory in Grove.

Williams are a team on the rise but must make the most of having such a strong line-up in 2025 and potentially 2026 and beyond as well.