When Carlos Sainz's F1 dream was nearly destroyed by Red Bull

It seems Carlos Sainz has found a new pursuit for sharing stories of his F1 journey and his past struggles with his fans. The Spaniard driver relives a defining experience from his career, and this anecdote includes Red Bull. A reputable figure in motorsports today, Sainz received a make-or-break task for 2014—to win the Formula Renault 3.5 title or risk jeopardizing his seat in Red Bull's juniors and risk missing out on getting to F1.


Sainz entered Red Bull Junior in 2010 and tasted his first F1 equipment at the 2013 young driver test at Silverstone. Behind the wheel of that season's Toro Rosso and championship-winning RB9 driven by Sebastian Vettel, the experience was a taste of what might be his future.
But so far, Sainz had struggled in the junior ranks, his sole championship being the 2011 Formula Renault 2.0 crown, when he beat Daniil Kvyat and Stoffel Vandoorne. Red Bull was running out of patience by 2014. His future uncertain, Sainz was stuck in Formula Renault 3.5—one of the top feeder series of the day, on a par with GP2 (now FIA Formula 2).

Pitted against strong opposition from Pierre Gasly, Oliver Rowland, Sergey Sirotkin, and part-time entry Esteban Ocon, Sainz performed under the heat. He swept the series with seven wins, taking the title and demonstrating his capabilities.
“I remember I was starting to get close to , it was those one or two years before making it, and Red Bull told me, ‘Okay, next year is your last chance; you go into (Formula Renault 3.5, and you either win or there is no space for you in Formula 1.’ I'm 18-19 years old, so you feel the pressure, and I suddenly realized that, from believing I was always going to make it because you are naive when you are younger, you say, ‘I have the talent, I'm winning, I'm going to make it’, that I might not,” Sainz recalled to Rolling Stone. “I was lucky to have my dad, who was already world champion at the time, saying, ‘This is what you are missing to be world champion,’ and I won [FR3.5] and I made it to Formula 1. But if I hadn't done that switch, and if I didn't have my dad there to help and guide me to go up in my preparation, I wouldn't be where I am now.”
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Now a veteran Ferrari driver, Sainz's path is a reminder of the huge burden young drivers carry and the importance of mentorship in determining the success of a racing career.