Carlos Sainz reacts to beating Lewis Hamilton to first podium with new team

Carlos Sainz refused to get drawn into talk of beating Lewis Hamilton to a first podium with their new teams, insisting he is only focused on Williams’ success.

Sainz enjoyed an incredible weekend at the 2025 F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, securing Williams’ first top-three finish since the Belgium 2021.

The Spaniard finished on the podium on merit after starring in qualifying.

Sainz had provisional pole position up until the final minutes of Q3, ultimately securing second on the grid behind Max Verstappen.

He maintained second for most of the race but lost out to George Russell through the pit stop phase.

While Mercedes had the edge on pace, Sainz resisted Kimi Antonelli's late-race charge to come away with a podium finish.

Sainz’s first season with Williams has been mixed.

He’s shown flashes of speed but has consistently struggled to bag big points, unlike teammate Alex Albon.

Remarkably, it means Sainz scored his first podium for Williams before Hamilton has managed at Ferrari.

Sainz was replaced by the seven-time world champion at the start of this season.

However, Sainz delivered a respectful reply when asked about that comparison in Sunday’s FIA press conference in Baku.

“What everyone else does is not my business, to be honest,” Sainz said.

“What I care about is that the first opportunity that I had to score a podium with Williams, and the first opportunity Williams had to score a podium, we took it, we scored it, and there it is.”

Can Williams finish on the podium again?

Williams currently sits fifth in the 2025 F1 constructors’ championship, 29 points ahead of Racing Bulls.

RB scored their first podium of the year at Zandvoort as Isack Hadjar finished third.

Sauber are the other midfield team with a rostrum appearance – Nico Hulkenberg at Silverstone.

Sainz feels Las Vegas will be Williams’ next best chance of a standout result.

“Not much more than this, to be honest. I think the podium is – unless something crazy happens – maybe our best chance,” Sainz explained.

“Probably Vegas will be our next best track to try and maybe put together a top five or a top six, which is what we sometimes can achieve when everything goes right.

“Apologies, it’s a tough ask. I’ll fight for it if it comes, like you’ve seen today. But the rest, for example in Qatar, I don’t think we will score points. That’s how much our performance swings. But then we will have the Austins, the Mexicos. We will be a pure midfield car where we can maybe get in the points and keep our championship going. So excited to see what happens in those races.”