Don’t put those red overalls in storage just yet. Carlos Sainz is back in the Ferrari conversation for 2026 — at least in the minds of a few paddock veterans — with Johnny Herbert floating the idea that the Williams driver could be the one to step in if Lewis Hamilton and the Scuderia decide to cut their “multi-year” adventure short at the end of 2025.
Herbert’s read of the room? Hamilton’s recent mood music hasn’t exactly screamed harmony. After a grim qualifying in Budapest — where he called himself “useless” and hinted there’s “a lot going on in the background that’s not great” — the former FIA steward believes the door could open to a mutual split if results and chemistry don’t turn soon. In that scenario, he says, Ferrari would be wise to have the next move lined up.
That next move, in Herbert’s view, isn’t Max Verstappen. It might be the man Hamilton replaced.
Sainz was shown the way out of Maranello to make space for Hamilton, then landed at Williams on a multi-year deal covering 2025–26. The arrangement has long been linked to whispers of an escape clause should a front-running seat emerge — talk Williams has pushed back on — but the Spaniard hasn’t exactly doused the speculation. Asked recently if he’d go back to Ferrari, Sainz’s answer was a coy “Yeah, maybe!”
There’s a reason he’s still held in high regard on Via Abetone. Across 2021–24 he delivered four wins in red and frequently went toe-to-toe with Charles Leclerc, including a composed, point-proving 2024 campaign after being told Hamilton was inbound. The fit worked before. And in an era of sweeping 2026 regulations, familiarity has its value.
None of this means a change is imminent. Hamilton’s Ferrari deal was billed as “multi-year” when he signed, and per reports he even holds an option to extend further into 2027. Equally, Sainz has committed his near-term future to Williams, where the project has been sold to him as a medium-term climb rather than an instant fix.
But Herbert’s comments do tap into a growing undercurrent. Hamilton’s start in red has been scratchy, the public tone occasionally spiky, and Ferrari’s standards — and timelines — are unforgiving. If both sides decide the fit isn’t right by season’s end, Sainz is the most obvious, least-disruptive name on the board.
It’s only August, and silly season rarely rewards certainty. Still, if Ferrari do end up shopping for 2026, they know exactly where to find a driver who understands the place — and who wouldn’t need a map to get to Maranello.
