Carlos Sainz Laments Imola F1 Disappointment: ‘Don’t Seem To Catch A Break’

Williams Formula 1 driver Carlos Sainz has shared his disappointment following the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.

After starting the race in sixth position, he crossed the line in eighth. His teammate Alex Albon started from seventh and went on to secure a fifth-place finish, narrowly missing out on fourth place.

Both of the Williams cars looked strong at the Imola circuit. However, Sainz felt his race was compromised after a virtual safety car and a safety car scuppered his strategy.

Commenting on the challenging race in a press release from the team, the Spanish driver explained:

“Obviously I’m disappointed right now after another weekend where we had good pace and I felt really good all weekend, but for one reason or the other, we don’t seem to catch a break on Sundays.

“It hurts to miss a top five finish on a day that we were quicker than Mercedes and Ferrari. In hindsight, stopping early and then the VSC compromised our result. We need to keep making steps forward on communicating better during the race and I know better days will come, I have no doubt about it.

“We keep pushing team! On to Monaco!”

Williams team principal James Vowles also commented:

“Really great result for the team today with another double points finish, and yet there is still some disappointment as there was more available to us.

“But we’ve been fast all year long and we are progressing relative to some giants; we were running on genuine merit up in a podium position.

“Alex executed an absolutely mega drive. I was on the edge of my seat watching him fighting against the Ferraris. He came off on the worst end, although he did get ahead of one of them by the end. I’m proud of what he’s achieved and how he raced today.

“It’s a shame with Carlos; it was a very tricky call in the beginning and we didn’t get it right, but it will be his day and we will get him up into the right positions – we win and lose together.”

The Emilia Romagna Grand Prix kicked off the European leg of the 2025 F1 season. Now, the sport heads to Monte Carlo for the legendary Monaco Grand Prix, followed by Barcelona for the Spanish Grand Prix the week after.

2025 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix: Race results

1. Max Verstappen, Red Bull
2. Lando Norris, McLaren
3. Oscar Piastri, McLaren
4. Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari
5. Alex Albon, Williams
6. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
7. George Russell, Mercedes
8. Carlos Sainz, Williams
9. Isack Hadjar, Racing Bulls
10. Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull
11. Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin
12. Nico Hulkenberg, Sauber
13. Pierre Gasly, Alpine
14. Liam Lawson, Racing Bulls
15. Lance Stroll, Aston Martin
16. Franco Colapinto, Alpine
17. Oliver Bearman, Haas
18. Gabriel Bortoleto, Sauber
19. Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes – DNF
20. Esteban Ocon, Haas – DNF