Sainz told to keep options open

Top teams angling for the Ferrari star’s signature

MARTIN BRUNDLE has urged Carlos Sainz to “keep his options open” amid interest from Mercedes, Red Bull and Audi. The Ferrari star will be anxious to confirm his future drive after Fernando Alonso set the latest domino toppling by signing a new contract with Aston Martin.

The 29-year-old Spaniard is viewed by Red Bull as a worthy candidate to replace Sergio Perez, but the reigning champions are in no rush to confirm their 2025 line-up and are still assessing both their incumbent second driver Yuki Tsunoda.

Mercedes are also monitoring Sainz’s availability, but Toto Wolff still has his heart set on three-time champion Max Verstappen and is therefore unwilling to commit at present.

Discussing Sainz’s predicament on the Sky Sports F1 podcast, Brundle said: “Will Perez keep the Red Bull seat? That’s the key, that’s the cork in the bottle. Because putting Sainz in the Red Bull would be a no-brainer for me, or an Aston Martin or a MercedesBenz for that matter.

“He’s now got the experience, he’s got the speed, he’s still got youth on his side to an extent. So the problem team Sainz have is that Sauber, let’s call them Audi going forward, are putting him under pressure to do a long-term deal, which means he will then be at Sauber next year.

“(He’ll be) treading water and then hanging all of his chances on how quickly Audi can get their team and their power unit together and become competitive, and that’s no small task.

“I think my advice to Carlos and his Dad would be just… things happen very quickly in this business. Two weeks is a very long time in Formula One… just keep your options open.” – Express Newspapers