Carlos Sainz

Interesting facts

Carlos Sainz's path into racing was no accident: his father, two-time World Rally Champion Carlos Sainz Sr., guided him early on, and Carlos started karting himself in 2006, winning the Junior Monaco Kart Cup by 2009. He trained at a Madrid driving school run by Maria de Villota, and after her death in 2013 he placed a star on his helmet in tribute. Winning the 2014 Formula Renault 3.5 championship secured his F1 seat; he debuted for Toro Rosso in 2015 alongside Max Verstappen as teammates. At the 2022 British Grand Prix, his 150th start, he took his first pole and first win for Ferrari; in 2023 his Singapore victory single-handedly snapped Red Bull's 15-race winning streak that season. Early in 2024 he needed emergency appendix surgery, forcing him to miss the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. In 2023 his Richard Mille watch, worth 315,000 euros, was stolen in Milan, but he chased down and caught the thief himself. Carlos Sainz has been racing in Formula 1 since 2015 as a Spanish driver. He scored a total of 1342.5 championship points over his career. His best season was 2021, when he finished 5th in the championship with 164.5 points.