Carlos Sainz Secures First F1 Podium With Williams – ‘We Are on The Rise’
September 21, 2025
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Williams Racing Formula One driver Carlos Sainz was on cloud nine after securing a third-place finish at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, marking his first podium with the Grove-based outfit.
Sainz started the race in second after a flawless qualifying run on Saturday, saving himself from a potential incident since the session saw six red flags and many yellows.
His achievement marked the best start for the team this season, and its first podium finish as well. Sainz’s teammate Alex Albon delivered his best finish of the season thus far with P5 at the most recent Dutch Grand Prix.
Speaking of the race, the Spaniard faced a significant challenge from George Russell, who started fifth but managed to recover three positions to finish in second. Sainz was also under threat from Russell’s teammate Andrea Kimi Antonelli in the closing stage of the 51-lap race, but he successfully kept the rookie driver out of the DRS range.
Third placed Carlos Sainz of Spain and Williams lifts his trophy on the podium during the F1 Grand Prix of Azerbaijan at Baku City Circuit on September 21, 2025 in Baku, Azerbaijan. Third placed Carlos Sainz of Spain and Williams lifts his trophy on the podium during the F1 Grand Prix of Azerbaijan at Baku City Circuit on September 21, 2025 in Baku, Azerbaijan. Clive Rose/Getty Images
Sainz’s podium finish arrives nearly ten months after his second-place finish with Ferrari at the season finale at the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Speaking about his race at the Baku City Circuit, Sainz said:
“I cannot describe how happy I am and how good this feels. It tastes even better than my first ever podium.
“We have been fighting hard all year and we proved when we had the speed, we had it all year and everything comes together and we can do some amazing things together.
“We nailed the race, not one mistake and we managed to beat a lot of cars yesterday that we wouldn’t have expected to beat.”
Sainz moved from top team Ferrari to Williams before the 2025 season, knowing that the frequent podium finishes were beyond reach this year. He faced struggles in getting used to his FW47 F1 car thus far, but never lost hope. Acknowledging the tough run and appreciating his team for the support, he said:
“I’m extremely proud of everyone at Williams for pushing through a very difficult year. We have proven to everyone the massive step we took compared to last year.
“We are on the rise and the right direction. Unfortunately with me we had a lot of bad luck and incidents. Now I understand why it all happened because the first podium needed to come like this.”
Sainz added that his first podium finish with Williams is a lesson for him to not stop believing in himself or his team. He said:
“It’s just life. Life sometimes brings you these bad moments to give you a very nice one. This tastes much better than any other thing I was expecting.
“It’s a life lesson to keep believing and trusting yourself and your team around you because sooner or later it always pays off.”
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