Sainz: One of my best races ever

However, Sainz's third place in Baku came on merit, unlike the extraordinary conditions that governed the Formula 1 race in Spa in 2021, which was completed after a handful of laps behind the Safety Car due to heavy rain.

Sainz delivered the goods in qualifying with a decent lap at the start of Q3, which was followed by two Red Flag periods caused by Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri, with rain threatening proceedings and track conditions changing.

And while Max Verstappen denied Sainz a maiden pole with Williams, the latter started the race on the front row and drove a solid race but could not challenge George Russell in the faster Mercedes, who overcut the Spaniard, who consequently had to settle for third.

Nevertheless, it was a great result for the former Ferrari driver, who struggled to get up to speed at Williams on a day when his former team finished eighth and ninth with Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, respectively.

Speaking after the race, Sainz said: "Finishing P3 today in Baku and being on the podium is an amazing feeling! I think it’s one of my best races ever!

"We’ve been working so hard and gone through some really big ups and downs, but this makes it all worth it and we need to feel proud as a team. I’m sure this is just a taste of what’s to come for us at Williams, and we need to keep working in this direction.

"Today we had the pace, and we delivered when it mattered, not making any mistakes and scoring a magnificent podium on pure merit.

"Thank you to the entire team, here and back at home, for your relentless effort and support! And also, to all our Williams fans out there! I can’t wait for more to come! Vamos!" the 31-year-old from Madrid concluded.

James Vowles, Williams Racing's Team Principal, hailed the first podium under his watch; he said: "The result is fantastic.

"I’ve been fortunate to have a few podiums in my career, but this is one I’ll remember forever," Mercedes' former strategy head added. "We earned this together as a team—a team that, in recent years, has been at the back, fighting just to survive, and now has battled its way back into this position.

"Carlos delivered a phenomenal race—an exceptional drive from start to finish and a joy to watch. You could see and hear just how much it meant to him. I believe in positive momentum, and this gives Carlos a real foundation to build on.

"For now, I can’t wait to get back to the factory on Monday with the trophy and feel the roof come off the place. This result is a reward for the incredible dedication of the entire workforce, who give so much of their lives to this team," Vowles concluded.