With Carlos Sainz Jr still undecided on his 2027 seat, Williams Racing might be interested in a former Red Bull driver.
Carlos Sainz Jr's contract with Williams will end after the 2026 Formula One season. The Spaniard might be waiting for a top-tier seat to open up, which would force Williams to look for a new driver to pair up with Alex Albon.
Albon also has his multi-year contract ending after this season, but it's highly likely that he will re-sign with Williams.
So, back to Williams, they might be fielding interest from driver camps, including former Red Bull and current Cadillac driver Sergio Perez. Per Auto Sport Web, Perez's camp has opened its communication lines with Williams.
Perez's (relatively) decent performances for Cadillac
Understandably, the Cadillac team is struggling in its first year in F1. So far, they're the only team that hasn't scored midway through the season.
However, it seems that Perez has been more consistent in extracting performance from the car than his teammate Valtteri Bottas. In qualifying, Perez slightly leads Bottas, 6-5. In Grand Prix races, Perez also leads, 6-3.
The Spaniard would also come close to a points finish in the 2026 Monaco Grand Prix. He narrowly missed Q2 on Saturday, and put himself in position to score points on Sunday. Perez crossed the finish line 11th, but was bumped to 10th following a Nico Hulkenberg. However, he incurred a 10-second time penalty for his wrong positioning at a standing restart, dropping him from P10 to P15.
Still, the Monaco GP showed Perez's resiliency, especially in battling a car that the team considered retiring due to extreme vibrations.
Now, imagine what he could do in a better car. Which brings us to…
Can Perez really perform better in a more reliable car?
I know what you're thinking. Perez underwhelmed during his final year at Red Bull in 2024, scoring only 152 points compared to teammate Max Verstappen's 437. But he already told the media that he wasn't able to show his "true potential" that year, citing various circumstances that hindered him.
So, yes, Perez has the experience and skills to be a good driver on a better team. His camp knows this, and that's why they might be looking for a seat outside Cadillac.
If Williams develops their car the right way in the second half of the season, you can expect Perez's camp to engage in further talks with the Grove-based F1 team.
