Red Bull boss Christian Horner has revealed that “options remain open” with Carlos Sainz, despite choosing not to sign him to complete its Formula 1 line-up in 2025.
Sainz became available on the market when the bombshell news broke almost 12 months ago that Ferrari wouldn’t extend his deal as it had acquired Lewis Hamilton.
However, Red Bull turned down the chance to reunite with Sainz despite holding talks, while Mercedes overlooked him to replace Hamilton with Andrea Kimi Antonelli.
The Spaniard instead penned a multi-term deal with Williams, though rumours circulated he could move to Red Bull once it became clear Sergio Perez was on thin ice.
But having since axed Perez, Red Bull has opted to promote Liam Lawson, who ended 2024 with sister squad Racing Bulls, to partner Max Verstappen for this season.
Nevertheless, Horner has admitted that Red Bull did contemplate hiring Sainz and divulged that he will remain on the side’s radar should Lawson not be up to the task.
“Carlos is a great driver, and options still remain open with him in the future,” Horner told RacingNews365.
“He was considered, and in many respects, you’d say there was a real logic [to] Carlos, but we made the choice to look internally and put belief in the junior programme.
“That attracts more juniors because they see a pathway to Formula 1, and if we’d gone outside the programme, that is not sending the right message,
because there is so much competition now for young drivers, at the age of 13 or 14 between the teams.
“That is healthy because it is investing in young talent, but by joining the Red Bull programme, you see a clear pathway that if you deliver, pretty much guarantees you’ll get to Formula 1.
“We would always prefer to give the opportunity to the progression of the junior programme.”
Sainz claims Red Bull did him ‘a favour’
Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko has urged Lawson to not even consider attempting to beat Verstappen, while Horner said his role will be to provide “strength in depth”.
Sainz, who was team-mates with Verstappen in his debut season in 2015, thinks his desire to win races and titles is what prompted Red Bull to turn down his services.
“Red Bull had me available for six months, and they didn’t pick me,” Sainz said, speaking on F1’s Beyond the Grid podcast.
“I think it’s because I simply don’t fit into the type of driver that they need right now in Red Bull – and I’m completely fine with that. If anything, they’re making me a favour.”
Sainz denies he could’ve waited on Red Bull
Sainz also denied that he made a mistake in not waiting to see how Perez’s situation developed, citing how that risked him not being on the F1 grid in 2025 altogether.
“I don’t see myself as like a lost opportunity to not wait to December,” he explained. That’s not how the Formula 1 market works.”
He added: “I think, if anything, a lot of people in the paddock will think I took too long, especially a lot of my fellow drivers thought I was taking too long to decide.
“If I would have done that, I might have even been without a Formula 1 contract for ’25 if I keep Alpine, Williams or Audi waiting until this late.”
