Recently, Ferrari made a sensational signing in Spaniard Carlos Sainz until the end of the 2022 F1 season. Unsurprisingly, rumors started going around that Sainz will stay with the team at least until the end of 2024. But how much will the reality differ from the predictions?

Well, Ferrari’s team principal, Mattia Binotto, opened up that Ferrari never recruits a driver for just two seasons, hinting at a bigger contract for the Spaniard.

What did the Ferrari team principal say about Sainz?

Speaking to Marca, Binotto opened up that the Italian team was already planning on retaining Sainz for “the next years“, much before the new season.

“I think he is a very young driver,” Binotto is quoted as saying by PlanetF1. “The youngest line up since 1968. Normally, we don’t make such a choice only for two years.”

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“It is because you are trying to create solid foundations for the future and looking at the long term as well. So, we hope that Carlos will be renewed and be with us as well in the next years.”

Sainz had a brilliant couple of seasons with McLaren, with the latest season managing to capture Ferrari’s attention. Meanwhile, Ferrari was holding a struggling Sebastian Vettel, who just couldn’t recover from a disappointing 2019 season.

The German fell further down the field, while his teammate was constantly churning out crucial points for the team. Hence, Ferrari realized they were going nowhere with the four-time world champion and turned their focus towards Sainz.

Ferrari’s recent history of signing drivers

Let’s start with Sebastian Vettel. It was evident with Vettel that Ferrari always prefers to watch their new driver’s progression over a season. The Maranello-outfit recruited the German for the 2015 season, and unsurprisingly, he impressed the team with a powerful debut performance.

Hence they extended his contract until the end of 2017, and later, Ferrari offered him a much bigger contract – a 3-year deal until the 2020 season.

The story is similar to Leclerc. The Monegasque had initially signed a one-year deal with Ferrari for the 2019 season. However, the fact that he managed to out-qualify his experienced teammate straightaway, left Ferrari in awe. Subsequently, they offered Leclerc a whopping five-year deal until the end of 2024.

Now looking at Sainz, it is likely that the Spaniard will soon get an additional offer to the ongoing one. Ferrari would want him to stay in the team, at least until 2024.

Beyond that, Ferrari might get their hands on Mick Schumacher, considering he impresses them with stellar performances.

Apart from Mick, there are other young guns like Robert Shwartzman and Callum Ilott gearing up for their potential F1 debut. Amid such tough competition, will Sainz be able to stick around with the team beyond 2024?

Why did Ferrari Sign Carlos Sainz?