Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur has revealed that Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari future should be sorted before the end of the season with the Spanish driver hoping to sign a new long-term contract with the team.
Sainz’s current contract expires at the end of the 2024 campaign, leaving him with just over 18 months left on his deal. The Spaniard is looking to secure his long-term future at Maranello and is not interested in playing the number two role to Charles Leclerc.
Further complicating matters are the reports of interest from elsewhere. Sainz has been heavily connected to Audi’s 2026 arrival in the sport with the Spanish driver, who worked with Andreas Seidl during his time at McLaren, seen as a potential team leader for the organisation.
Speaking to Motorsport.com Italy about Sainz’s future, Vasseur explained: “We are aligned… we always receive the same questions and give the same answers! We have a lot of time to talk to each other, there are still 18 months of the contract ahead of us.
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“On both sides, we want to start the next championship with a clear situation, and that means we will have to make decisions before the end of the season. We are completely aligned with Carlos and his management.”
While the Drivers’ Championship standings show Sainz in seventh place, the Spaniard has enjoyed a consistent and confident third season with the Scuderia.
The 28-year-old sits just seven points behind his talented team-mate, and that gap only exists due to opening lap contact with Oscar Piastri that ended Sainz’s race at the Belgian Grand Prix prior to the summer break.
This summer has been one of turmoil for Ferrari on the contract front, though. The Italian manufacturer has been courting seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, albeit unsuccessfully, and this will have no doubt had an impact on Sainz’s feelings towards the management team.
Ferrari’s Madrid-born driver explained to Auto Action earlier this summer that: “I do prefer starting a season already knowing where I’m going to be the following year. That’s the only way to make progress.
“While it’s still early days and the end of the season is still some four months away, it’s true that once this championship will be over I’ll fully focus on sorting my future.”
