Carlos Sainz is seriously eyeing his options for 2027, and things at Williams have gotten grim enough that he's actively hoping Max Verstappen bails on Red Bull. The Spaniard's current situation is bleak, to be honest. Williams promised big progress with the new 2026 regulations, but instead they've gone backwards. Sainz and teammate Alex Albon have scraped together just 11 points between them, and Aston Martin has even overtaken them in the development race. That's not what you sign up for when you join a team.

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Despite Sainz making the car look better than it probably is, according to former Haas boss Guenther Steiner, the 31-year-old knows he's got options to explore. His contract lets him leave at the end of 2026, so he's actively assessing what's out there. Alpine and Aston Martin are showing interest, sure, but Sainz wants to get back to a genuine top team. That's where Red Bull comes in. The thing is, Max Verstappen hasn't committed to staying at Red Bull beyond 2027. He's mulling over whether to stick around, move elsewhere, or even walk away from F1 entirely.

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Journalist Andrew Benson suggested that Sainz is banking on Verstappen making an exit, which would theoretically open up a Red Bull seat for him. Thing is, that scenario probably won't pan out the way Sainz hopes. If Verstappen does leave Red Bull, he'd likely head to either Mercedes or McLaren. And whoever gets replaced at those teams, George Russell or Oscar Piastri, would probably jump straight into the Red Bull seat instead. So Sainz might be hoping for something that doesn't materialize. Still, with Williams looking increasingly unlikely to deliver the goods, exploring every possibility is exactly what he should be doing right now.

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The Williams car situation remains problematic across the board. It started the season overweight by 25 kilos, and while they're shedding that mass, their Baku upgrade won't be nearly as significant as what Aston Martin managed in Hungary. Everyone else is pushing forward so quickly that even solid updates might not shift Williams' competitive position much at all.

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