Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur has explained that the call he made to Toto Wolff to confess that he would be signing Lewis Hamilton for the 2025 season and beyond was more difficult than the one he made to Carlos Sainz. 2024 will be the Spaniard’s final year with the team after the Scuderia opted not to renew his contract.
It was widely expected that the 29-year-old would be handed a contract extension after claiming the team’s only Grand Prix victory of the 2023 campaign, and when Ferrari announced Charles Leclerc’s long-term extension in January, Sainz’s new deal seemed likely to follow suit.
However, Ferrari instead went for the most ambitious option available, poaching seven-time world champion Hamilton from Mercedes after the 39-year-old activated an exit clause in his contract, securing his services from the 2025 season onwards. This has left Sainz without a guaranteed spot on the grid beyond next year.
Discussing the conversation he had with Sainz regarding his departure from the team, Vasseur confessed: “It was not the easiest call of my life. But the one that was most difficult was the one with Toto.”
Despite the difficult position Sainz now finds himself in, Vasseur has no concerns regarding his approach to the upcoming season. He added: “I’m fully convinced that [he] is a very professional driver, that he understands that we have a long season in front of us, that it’s a huge opportunity.
“And I think it’s also a dream to be in this situation, to have the team behind him. I mean, we had a long discussion that as you can imagine, I will be fully supporting with Carlos. He is fully committed and we know that we have to do the job together. We are together, we are professional.”
Sainz still has plenty of time to find a new drive for the 2025 season and with nearly three-quarters of the grid out of contract at the end of the year, there will be no shortage of interested parties.
One of the most compelling opportunities for the 29-year-old would be a link-up with Sauber ahead of their rebrand to Audi in 2026. Sainz’s father has enjoyed a long-term relationship with the German brand during his glittering rally career, and with Andreas Seidl involved heavily in the project, there is interest from the inside.
With both Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu out of contract at the end of the year, there could be an opportunity for Sainz at Sauber, although the Spaniard may also consider staking a claim for a drive with either Mercedes or Red Bull.
