Carlos Sainz Jr. is facing issues from 'muscle memory'. [Credits: X/ Williams F1]

James Vowles Reveals Key Problems for Carlos Sainz at Williams!

Is Carlos Sainz still unable to make the most out of his Williams?

Carlos Sainz Jr. is facing issues from 'muscle memory'. [Credits: X/ Williams F1]

Carlos Sainz Jr. took many weekends to adjust to his new car in 2025. Even after his relatively better performance last race, Sainz has not yet mastered his car properly. Carlos Sainz came to William F1 in 2025 after Ferrari replaced him with Lewis Hamilton. Initially, Sainz was posting incredible lap times in his Williams. He was able to reach the top-5 during practice sessions more than once. Unfortunately, Sainz’s races were not as favorable for him.

He crashed out in the first race and was wrecked by Tsunoda the next weekend. Out of the three weekends he could complete the race, Sainz only managed to score points fairly in the last weekend. He went on to bring his best finish for Williams in Saudi Arabia. Moreover, Sainz also helped his teammate with a DRS tow.

Our second double points finish of the season 👊

Hear from JV in the latest The Vowles Verdict, presented by @krakenfx 👇
— Atlassian Williams Racing (@WilliamsRacing) April 23, 2025

His team principal has been more than appreciative of Sainz. James Vowles has mentioned Sainz as a multi-talented asset more than once. Indeed, Carlos Sainz’s strategic abilities have set him apart from other drivers on the grid.

But even after two months of racing in F1 2025, it seems like his past has not left him completely. Carlos Sainz’s days at Ferrari are still influencing him to some extent.

Why is Carlos Sainz Unable to Master His Williams?

James Vowles is one of the most open team prinicpals of the F1 grid. His race briefings and regular updates are something many fans look forward to. So when the question arises regarding his star driver, it was obvious that Vowles would step up. Carlos Sainz has not performed badly in any of the five races this season. He was either unlucky or his car simply did not carry enough pace.

Vowles had an answer to any doubts which critics might have about Carlos Sainz.

“One of the things Carlos finds very different to the Ferrari is that they could carry a lot more ‘combined’ into certain corners, and that’s not an area we have worked on over the years.”

‘Combined’ refers to the act of braking during a corner such that a driver can gradually trail off the brakes in order to maximise the speed out of the corner. Sainz learnt this technique of combined throttle response and braking from his teammate at Ferrari. In his four years at the Maranello outfit, Sainz had developed the ability to utilise this technique for himself and elevate his performance.

Carlos Sainz's arrival has helped Williams identify a key limitation 🔧

The team currently sits fifth in the constructors' standings 👇#F1 https://t.co/Lbsi4SxrRn
— Formula 1 (@F1) April 30, 2025

The Williams is not built in a same way that a Ferrari is. Due to this difference, the Williams drivers need to sacrifice their speed and performance during some corners unlike the top teams. Sainz himself mentioned his past experience was not doing him any good in his new car.

“Obviously, Ferrari had certain car balance, a certain direction that we followed. After three or four years of developing a car that required you to brake in a certain manner, turn in in a certain manner, release the brake in a certain place, you fall into a trap of muscle memory of doing everything that way. When you jump into a different car, and especially under pressure in Qualifying, you try and find the last two-tenths of the car and you fall into your muscle memory, which has been built up over three years.”

Carlos Sainz Jr.

Ferrari Formula 1 Team

Formula 1

Formula 1 2025 Season

James Vowles

Williams F1

Rohan Singh

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I work as a Writer at The Playoffs specialising in NHL, Formula 1 and Motorsports. I got into online journalism a couple of years ago. I used to be an intern for a website managing their Formula 1 content and then I served an entire year as a contractual writer.