Did Mercedes ever come close to signing Carlos Sainz?

Mercedes never made a “concrete offer” to Carlos Sainz, it has been reported.

Outgoing Ferrari driver Sainz has chosen Williams instead of Sauber/Audi or Alpine for the next two seasons, deciding the fate of the key remaining driver on the F1 market.

Mercedes still have not named their replacement for Ferrari-bound Lewis Hamilton (although Andrea Kimi Antonelli is the clear frontrunner) and, at Silverstone, Sainz seemingly re-entered the running.

Toto Wolff, after initially ruling out Sainz, hinted: “It’s… interesting. And you know it’s like Bernie said, last week I have an opinion, this week I have a different one.”

But after Sainz penned a Williams contract, Craig Slater said on the Sky F1 podcast: “He has chosen the best available option, and the options were limited.

“The Red Bull seat, for the past month at least, has not been available to him.

"There was toing and froing between himself and Red Bull. Perhaps because Christian Horner has authority now, rather than Helmut Marko, which is a situation which has changed this season, maybe counted against him.

“Horner stuck by Sergio Perez. So that does not seem to have been an option.

“Mercedes, I reported six weeks ago for him, due to the timeframes in which Mercedes and Sainz wanted to make their decisions by, it seemed like he was a contender again. Or discussions could reopen. But it hasn’t gone anywhere.

“I have tried to check with people who have a window into Mercedes’ plans. I don’t believe any concrete offer was made by Mercedes to Sainz, or even the door opened for a season. So I think it’s always been a long shot.

“Ultimately he had to decide between Williams, Audi and a late bid from Alpine which did turn his head.

“He’s gone for Williams which isn’t a great short-term option based on current form. That has been uppermost in Sainz’s mind.

“He is conscious that these projects, for a driver, can be damaging in the short-term. You can go from hero to zero.

“I think his opinion is ‘next year I will look best in the Williams’.”

Engine tipped as key reason for Carlos Sainz

“When you look at next year, you can’t see the order of the grid shaking up a lot from this year,” Bernie Collins told the Sky F1 podcast.

“Williams, Sauber/Audi, Alpine… Williams is the probably the best of those.

“Looking to 2026 with the proposed new regulations coming in, it puts focus onto the engine.

“We don’t know which engine Alpine will go with. We know Audi is coming in. We know Williams will stay with Mercedes.

“The Mercedes engine, the majority of us consider it to be the strongest.

“The expectation is that, even if it’s not up for podiums and wins next year, potentially in 2026 brings opportunity.

“That’s only one year of lost results. It’s slightly more forward sight on Carlos’ behalf.”