Carlos Sainz, the driver ditched by Ferrari to make way for Lewis Hamilton, believes his old team could now be even better placed to return to the summit of Formula One with the former world champion on board. Hamilton joined Ferrari from Mercedes, with the 40-year-old set to make his debut for the Italian giants at next month’s season-opening Australian Grand Prix as he goes in search of a record-breaking eighth drivers’ world title.

Sainz made way for Hamilton’s move, with the 30-year-old Spaniard now lining up for Williams instead in Melbourne on March 16 after spending three years driving alongside Charles Leclerc at Ferrari.

But Sainz, speaking at British team Williams’s 2025 launch at Silverstone on Friday, said: “When I left, I did feel that both Ferrari and Charles were ready to fight for a world championship, and with Lewis joining that is only going to increase.

“I have never been team-mates with Lewis so I don’t know what he is capable of doing. I have never seen his data. I have seen Charles’s data and I know how good he is. 

“The only way you can evaluate a driver is when you are a team-mate and you see what they are capable of doing.

“But when I look at Lewis’s results and his background, and what he has achieved, I can only say that there will be a very high chance that he is going to be competitive for Ferrari.”

Hamilton is set to unveil his new Ferrari at the Formula One season launch at the O2 Arena in London on Tuesday before heading to the team’s Maranello headquarters the next day, where he is due to speak to the media for the first time as a Ferrari driver.

Williams finished a lowly ninth in the 2024 constructors standings but Sainz insists he can help revive the fortunes of the nine-time champions.

“I believe I bring a lot of knowledge, a lot of things you know, that I think could be applied to this car and to the team at the same time,” said Sainz. 

“I see a team that is ready also to fight for wins. It’s just a matter of getting everything around the team to make sure we’re giving also all the engineers and all the mechanics and the drivers the right tools to compete at the highest level.”

Sainz, a winner of four Grand Prix, will team-up alongside Alex Albon at Williams for the new 24-round season, with the 28-year-old London-born driver relishing the competition. 

“I am going up against someone (Sainz) who has got a big reputation, has just come from a very strong year, possibly his best in Formula One, so that is a great challenge to have and a positive outlook for me,” Albon said. 

“I believe in myself and I am happy to go up against anyone.”

File image of Lionel Messi (left) and Franco Colapinto (right)© X (Twitter)