Williams’ Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz have agreed that the FW47 has become faster with new upgrades, but is also harder to drive, after promise shown at this weekend’s Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix.

The Grove-based squad opted to arrive at Spa-Francorchamps with a new and extensive upgrade package, focusing on floor fences and a new floor edge.

It seemed to pay dividends in the Sprint Race for Sainz, taking sixth place after a strong qualifying showing.

Despite Albon finishing 15th, he was able to turn things around in qualifying, qualifying an amazing fifth.

The Anglo-Thai driver set a blistering lap late in Q3 to qualify ahead of George Russell’s Mercedes, and will line up just one place behind Max Verstappen.

“I mean, I was P10 in Q2 and I didn’t feel that happy,” he told media including Motorsport Week. “I didn’t really know where the lap time was, where I could get more positions, let’s say.”

Albon was celebrating making it into Q3, thinking that was the limit, but then exceeded all expectations with a great lap to be within touching distance of the leaders at lights out.

“We were so far on the draggy side that we’re still okay. We remember Silverstone.

“I think it was the Red Bulls and ourselves, we were quite well-endowed for this. We paid the price when it rained on Sunday. So, we made sure not to overdo it.”

“But yeah, hopefully we’ll be okay. I still think, as a team, we struggle a bit more in the wet compared to some other cars out there.

“So, if we can stay dry as long as possible, that’d be lovely.”

Sainz said that Williams has “gone in the right direction, they’ve given us laptime and performance, yesterday and today shows,” but added the the FW47 is a “trickier car to drive in some ways, but definitely when you put it together it feels a step forward.

“I think we’re going in the right direction.”

Albon corroborates Sainz’s car ‘trickier but faster’ belief

The question was put to Albon about Sainz’s assertion on the cars, and corroborated the Spaniard’s take on it.

“Yeah, I would say so,” he said. “I think we obviously haven’t done enough laps yet to really set up the car into a perfect place.

“I think a lot of that will come back to us just with set-up changes. Being a Sprint Race weekend, we haven’t really been able to do much. We’ve got more downfalls.

“But yeah, I think we need to see. Because it hasn’t been the easiest weekend so far just to get laps together.”

Albon added that his belief that “our race pace is strong. It’s hard to know because I’ve been in DRS trains the whole race this morning. But our race pace was good on Friday. 

“I think we’ll be okay. We just need to get some clear air. I hope maybe the cars can clear off and I can do my race.”

READ MORE – George Russell: Mercedes has taken ‘big step backwards’ amid F1 Belgian GP struggles

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Carlos Sainz has revealed he was “not really” close to joining Mercedes for 2025, after failed talks with the team that ultimately saw him sign for Formula 1 rivals Williams.

The Spaniard was forced onto the driver market before the 2024 season had even begun, with the revelation that previous employers Ferrari had signed Lewis Hamilton for 2025.

A number of options spun its way through the rumour mill, as deals with Sauber – to become Audi – and Alpine were mooted.

But Sainz would eventually choose Williams, signing a multi-year deal with the Grove-based squad.

However, before choosing the Mercedes customer outfit, Sainz had held discussions with the works team, and its boss Toto Wolff, about potentially joining in what would have effecitvely been a straight swap with Hamilton.

On the High Performance Podcast, Sainz was asked if was close to securing a contract with Wolff, he replied: “Not really.

“We spoke a lot with Toto and everyone else at the time and I was certainly one of the options that was considered.

“But how close was I? You can ask Toto that.

“But I think he is very happy with Kimi Antonelli.”

Does Sainz regret deciding against Audi move amid Williams ‘frustration’?

Former Haas boss Guenther Steiner has theorised that perhaps Sainz ought to have signed for Sauber, with the Audi project in mind.

Speaking on ‘The Red Flags Podcast’, Steiner is asked during its ‘Gas or Brake’ [yes or no] segment whether Sainz regrets signing for Williams.

“Gas,” he said. “But, not only because of the performance, [but] also because he was driving at Ferrari when Mattia [Binotto, Sauber/Audi COO] was there.

“And I think he, in general, is not having a good experience in the moment at Williams.

“I mean, he’s struggling a lot, and Carlos is a very good driver.

“So they had a very good beginning of the year, but mainly with Albon and not with Carlos. Carlos never had any really good results.

“So, obviously, a little bit of frustration will have set in. And thinking back, I said, I should have gone with Audi. But hey, you make the decision, you live by your choices.”

READ MORE – Kimi Antonelli may find ‘temporary home’ at Alpine in fresh Mercedes plot twist – report

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Carlos Sainz has conveyed his sympathy to George Russell over battling the “noise” of the speculation regarding his future with the Mercedes Formula 1 team.

The Brit has enjoyed a typically consistent season, finishing in the points in all but one of the Grands Prix contested so far this season, including victory in Canada.

Russell sits fourth in the Drivers’ Championship, just 18 points behind Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, the catalyst for the speculation regarding his 2026 whereabouts.

It was Russell himself who sparked existing speculation further when he promulgated Verstappen’s discussions with Mercedes about a 2026 seat.

And now with rumours flying even further, it is not yet known whether Russell will be offered a new deal with the German marque, or whether it will opt for the four times World Champion.

Sainz faced his own problem last year, driving the whole of 2024 knowing that he would be out at Ferrari, with Lewis Hamilton coming in to replace him for 2025, but managed to take two wins on his way to fifth place in the championship.

Speaking to the talkSPORT Driving podcast, Sainz believes his and Russell’s situations create “noise,” but said it is not necessarily a gateway to affecting a driver’s performance.

“As a racing driver, it’s not an ideal situation,” he said. “We all try and hide the fact that it affects you, we try not to be affected.

“I strongly believe that, like I did last year, you can still have a very strong season with all this noise going around your future and around your team, like it can be proved by what George is doing this year and what I did last year.

“But at the same time, it’s not ideal. It’s noise for you. It’s noise for the team. It’s noise for your engineers, for your mechanics.”

The Russell/Verstappen/Mercedes triangle ‘not an ideal situation’

At this point of the season last year, Sainz was already firmly out of the door at Ferrari, with his deal at Williams not yet confirmed.

Russell has previously stated there is no rush to enter negotiations for a new contract, but with time ticking away and with Verstappen lurking in the shadows, Sainz added that the relationship between driver and team could be affected by the swirling speculation, regardless of how well both are performing.

“In an ideal situation, the way you go racing, the way you are getting the results and the way you are being world champion is when all this is quiet,” he said, “and when there’s 100 per cent trust between you and the team, and when there’s 100 per cent commitment between both parties.

“Even though you can still have a very successful season, it’s not the ideal situation and it’s not what any driver wants.”

READ MORE – Max Verstappen denies doubt over 2026 Red Bull F1 prospects behind Mercedes talks 

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Max Verstappen has given a no-holds-barred stance on the direction of Formula 1‘s scheduling, saying that calendars need to be shorter and include “separate status” circuits.

The calendar for the 2026 season was released earlier this month, with another whopping 24-race schedule that takes in all but two of the months in the year.

All of the races bar one have been included, with the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix at Imola being replaced by the inaugural Madrid Grand Prix, at the as-of-yet constructed ‘Madring’ circuit.

This year’s race at Imola, which ultimately proved to be the final one, for some time at least, came with sadness conveyed by many of the drivers, including Verstappen, who said it “was one of my favourite tracks on the calendar”.

Although the number of races on the calendar has been increasing for some time, securing a spot on it has become more coveted than ever, with America taking three spots on it alone, with Asia and the Middle East occupying sizeable chunks, too.

There is also increasing speculation about the return of the South African Grand Prix, with Thailand also looking to rubberstamp itself on a future calendar.

Speaking to Formule 1 Magazine, Verstappen spoke of how he would organise the sport’s diary if he were in charge, and reserved special places for six circuits.

“Ultimately, you hope that a motorsport culture will also develop in those countries,” he told.

“But if it were up to me, the calendar would look very different and also have fewer races.

“Circuits that, in my opinion, deserve a ‘separate status’ and always belong on the calendar, purely on sporting grounds, are Spa-Francorchamps, Zandvoort, Silverstone, Imola, Suzuka and Brazil.”

Verstappen’s view a contrast to Sainz’s ‘adapt and create’ beliefs

Verstappen’s view is one that will be shared with a large number of F1 fans, who yearn for the style of circuits that were part and parcel of the calendar when they first watched the sport.

Even Spa-Francorchamps is not guaranteed a place now, having been effectively placed on a rotational basis to free up space for other suitors.

However, it is a contrast to the views of former team-mate Carlos Sainz, who believes that F1’s ever-growing business model should be reflected in the calendar.

When asked by Motorsport Week if he is sad to see many of the so-called ‘legacy’ circuits disappear, Sainz, who is an ambassador for the hotly anticipated Madring, said that newer tracks have the ability to be considered classics in the future, and it is up to established circuits to adapt to stay on.

“Obviously, I’m a big fan of having a track in Madrid, as you’ve pointed out, but as long as the tracks have character, it’s still a track in Europe,” he said.

“For me, it’s important for the tracks to have character. Austin is the best example. No one complains about going to Austin because Austin has character and it’s going to become an F1 classic in the future.

“I have nothing against having new tracks and new venues, as long as the tracks have character and have a personality to it. Regarding Europe, this is a business. You either adapt and create up to modern standards events, which I’m not saying F1 tracks in Europe cannot create, but I also understand the point of view of Stefano [Domenicali, F1’s CEO] on wanting to keep growing the business and making sure to create events that are up to modern F1 standards, like the Mexicos, the Miamis, etc.

“I think that’s where Madrid is capable of bringing that kind of vibe and event to Europe, in a city like Madrid. Hopefully, it’s one of the first European races to bring some of the states, Miami, Mexicos, to Europe.”

READ MORE – How Carlos Sainz is influencing the development of Madrid’s F1 circuit

The post Max Verstappen opposes Carlos Sainz’s vision on F1 calendar direction appeared first on Motorsport Week.

Carlos Sainz has talked at length about his role in the development of Madrid’s brand-new street circuit, which will make its debut on the Formula 1 calendar next year.

The Spaniard, a native of the capital city, holds an ambassadorial role for the so-called ‘Madring’, and was present for the beginning of its construction at a special event in April.

At 3.3 miles and 22 corners, the circuit will encompass a number of the city’s landmarks, and will be a mix of street and purpose-built areas, creating a unique layout, which also includes a banked area, promising a diverse challenge for the drivers.

Sainz has revealed that his role is very much a hands-on one, and that he is trying to ensure that the circuit is as good as can be for both the drivers and fans.

“Yeah, I’m an ambassador, so I’m aware of the track, where they’re building it, and now I’m trying to have a bit of an effect and influence in some corners to make sure they produce the right amount of overtaking and show,” he told media including Motorsport Week.

“I don’t think… maybe I’m a bit late to the advice for the first year, but hopefully we will progress and we will make not only a good event, which I’m sure it will be, but also a good show on the racing side.

“As modern F1 tracks nowadays, it’s important when they come in new to the calendar to have a bit of character and a bit of personality.”

Sainz stressed the need to guarantee a circuit that will have some significant overtaking opportunities, something that is often lacking in many street circuits, and is keen to make a few alterations to the layout will give the circuit its own personality, to give it a unique and positive status.

“For me, I don’t really care how the whole track is designed,” he said. “Obviously, the track itself is going to have a very characteristic corner with 24 per cent banking, very long combined.

“That’s going to be the main character of the track. It’s not in an open area where you can design an F1 track the way you want. There’s going to be another area. It’s going to be more of a street circuit vibe.

“But for me, where I’m trying to help is in the two main overtaking zones to make sure that the braking zone and the approaching of the cars and the way the corner opens up and the braking is wide enough and is big enough to produce overtaking.

“I need to see if we can change or adapt a couple of things that I’ve given advice on, but I’m definitely at least trying to make sure that whatever the track is, as long as there’s overtaking, look at Baku. There’s no corner really in Baku that is enjoyable from a driver’s standpoint, but if it has a long straight and it creates a good show, everyone loves Baku.

“It’s the same what we are. Obviously, with Madrid, there’s going to be a bit more character to it, but it needs to have overtaking.”

Madrid ‘capable’ of bringing the ‘vibe’ of the Americas

The Madrid Grand Prix, which is slated to be held on September 13, is the only new addition to the 2026 calendar, effectively replacing Imola, which makes way from the schedule.

A number of drivers stated over the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix weekend that it was important for legacy circuits such as Imola to remain on future calendars.

But for Sainz, he is confident the Madring will become a classic in the future, and spoke of his hope that it will bring the feel and atmosphere that the popular circuits across the Americas have managed to create.

“Obviously, I’m a big fan of having a track in Madrid, as you’ve pointed out, but as long as the tracks have character, it’s still a track in Europe,” he said.

“For me, it’s important for the tracks to have character. Austin is the best example. No one complains about going to Austin because Austin has character and it’s going to become an F1 classic in the future.

“I have nothing against having new tracks and new venues, as long as the tracks have character and have a personality to it. Regarding Europe, this is a business.

“You either adapt and create up to modern standards events, which I’m not saying F1 tracks in Europe cannot create, but I also understand the point of view of Stefano [Domenicali] on wanting to keep growing the business and making sure to create events that are up to modern F1 standards, like the Mexicos, the Miamis, etc.

“I think that’s where Madrid is capable of bringing that kind of vibe and event to Europe, in a city like Madrid. Hopefully, it’s one of the first European races to bring some of the states, Miami, Mexicos, to Europe.”

READ MORE – How F1 teams are handling the ‘significant challenge’ posed by 2026 rule change

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Williams has often made the most of its opportunities in 2025 — but the Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix proved to be an exception.

A weekend that showed strong potential ultimately unravelled, leaving the team to reflect on what might have been.

Both Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz showed promise during Friday practice in Montreal, but the weekend quickly unravelled heading into qualifying.

Sainz was eliminated in Q1 after being held up by the Racing Bulls’ Isack Hadjar on his flying lap, while Albon wrestled his FW47 into Q3 despite a large piece of engine cover detaching from the car mid-session.

However, Albon’s race was short-lived, a power unit issue forced an early retirement, as Sainz salvaged a point with a recovery drive from 16th to 10th.

After the race, Albon was left ruing what he felt could have been a strong result.

But beyond the technical failure, he pointed to deeper issues that held Williams back all weekend — from tyre management to overall car understanding.

“I think we missed an opportunity this weekend,” Albon told media including Motorsport Week.

“We need to get on top of the tyres and, also, we need to understand the car.

“The car was really strong in the race. Honestly, easy top 10. It’s frustrating to miss out.” 

Sainz faced his own battle with a cooling issue that forced him to brake frequently, preventing him from pushing at full pace throughout the race.

He admitted this cost him “two or three tenths” per lap over the 70 laps.

Despite recovering from 16th on the grid to score a point, Sainz remained unsatisfied.

“If you had told me yesterday, after starting 16t,h that we would get a point, I would be quite proud and happy,” he said. “But the reality is that I’m not.”

Handling struggles and strategic missteps hinder Williams’ weekend

The ex-Ferrari racing driver also acknowledged ongoing issues with the car’s handling early in the weekend, which put him on the back foot during both qualifying and the race.

“It’s not the first time recently that we haven’t managed to get everything under control on Friday,” he continued.

“We need to improve because it’s been several races in a row now where Sundays have been more challenging than they should be.”

Albon also pointed to the team’s strategy as a factor that would have limited his points chances, regardless of the engine troubles.

He explained that on a one-stop strategy, switching from Hard to Medium tyres rather than the other way around was better suited to the hot conditions in Montreal.

“I knew I couldn’t really hold on to the tyre as long as they wanted me to,” Albon expanded.

“I was quite forceful in trying to make sure that we got into the pits before. Because obviously you’re losing positions. 

“And I was losing three or four seconds a lap and getting swamped by the Hard[-tyre] cars.

“We were kind of, at that point, in the middle spot where we’ve gone too long.” 

READ MORE – Williams F1 Team Principal James Vowles signs long-term contract

The post Why Williams were ‘frustrated’ it didn’t cash in on F1 Canadian GP promise appeared first on Motorsport Week.

Carlos Sainz has said he feels vindicated by Lewis Hamilton’s Formula 1 struggles at Ferrari, saying it is a similar situation to some of his own during the “adaptation process.”

Hamilton has struggled to find significant performance in 2025 so far, having initially been billed as part of McLaren’s nearest competitors at Ferrari.

Despite being second in the Constructors’ Championship, Ferrari is already 197 points adrift of the Woking-based squad, with Charles Leclerc’s three podiums its only real highlight.

Hamilton has found it difficult to an even greater extent than his Monegasque counterpart, having struggled with the SF-25 in Grand Prix trim since his Sprint Race victory in China.

The seven-time champion is sixth in the Drivers’ standings, 23 points behind Leclerc, after a Spanish Grand Prix which he described as “the worst” race he’d experienced.

Sainz was ousted by Ferrari in favour of Hamilton after four seasons with the team, in which he took four wins, and is now, along with Alex Albon, spearheading Williams’ resurgence.

The Spaniard had previously stated that drivers need time to adapt to a new team, having switched to many in his 10-year period in F1.

When asked by Mundo Deportivo if he feels pride in the problems Hamilton is having, Sainz denied this but conveyed some relief in, in his view, being proved correct regarding his theory.

“I understand them, because I know how complicated it is,” he said. “Pride? No.

“You understand why it’s so hard, because I’ve had to suffer through changing teams five times, and it’s something that was hardly talked about before, the adaptation process.

“Before, everybody expected you to be there by the third race. I remember with [Daniel] Ricciardo, when he changed to Renault, and also to McLaren, there was an adaptation process.

“And me too, in every team I’ve changed. And before it was like people didn’t buy it, or saw it as a bit of an excuse.

“Now that a seven-times champion is changing [teams] and it also costs him, it confirms a bit what I was telling you five or 10 years ago that maybe you didn’t buy it, but now you do buy it.”

To ‘end up adapting’ the ‘important thing’

Hamilton recently said he will encourage Ferrari to focus on its 2026 car if the SF-25 continues to falter, and at 40, chances for him to secure a record eighth title are lessening.

Sainz said that a period of adaptation is acceptable, as long as it will eventually lead to a positive turning of the corner.

“But then the important thing is to end up adapting,” he added. “I think that’s the important thing.

“You can have five or six complicated months of adaptation, but what matters is to get there, I think, because if you get there, in the end, with the level and talent you have, then you end up showing what you are worth.

“I arrived in the middle of 2022 with pole positions at Silverstone, Spa and Austin. And I won a race, and in 2023, so in the end I got to the level I wanted. The important thing is to get there.

“The risk is that you never end up adapting to that team or car, and so far I’m lucky to say that I’ve always ended up adapting to every team.”

READ MORE – George Russell has grown ‘closer’ to Lewis Hamilton since Mercedes F1 split

The post Why Carlos Sainz feels vindicated by Lewis Hamilton’s F1 struggles at Ferrari appeared first on Motorsport Week.

Carlos Sainz has expressed that he’s drawn his “own conclusions” about the reason for Mercedes and Red Bull rejecting the chance to sign him in Formula 1 for 2025.

The driver market descended into chaos prior to the previous season even beginning once it was announced that Lewis Hamilton had agreed a deal to head to Ferrari.

Hamilton’s decision to depart Mercedes to partner the incumbent Charles Leclerc at Ferrari ensured that Sainz’s contract with the Italian marque wouldn’t be renewed.

That instigated a long-running saga centred on Sainz’s next destination as multiple lower-end sides aimed to capitalise on a multiple-time race winner being available.

Alpine, Sauber/Audi and Williams were all made to be patient, though, as the Spaniard waited to see whether an opening with Mercedes or Red Bull would materialise.

However, Mercedes invested in teenager Andrea Kimi Antonelli as Hamilton’s replacement, while Red Bull took the doomed call to issue renewed faith in Sergio Perez.

Sainz, who proceeded to pen a multi-term contract with Williams, was reticent when quizzed on his thoughts behind two front-running teams overlooking his services.

“I’ve come to my own conclusions. But I’ll keep them to myself,” Sainz told Motorsport.com.

“I believe the people in F1 know perfectly well why certain choices are made – I don’t need to explain it in front of a microphone.

Elaborating, Sainz added: “I took my time until the summer to check if there was an opportunity with a top team and to assess what the best alternative would be.

“I didn’t want to make the wrong choice – I evaluated everything very carefully.”

Sainz ‘more convinced’ than ever in Williams

Sainz explained his attention switched to considering the long-term prospects among his options once it became clear that remaining at a leading team wasn’t viable.

With Williams having since logged more points in nine races than across the past three seasons combined, Sainz harbours no doubts that he made the right decision.

“So I told myself: if I can’t join a top team, I’ll help build one,” the ex-McLaren and Ferrari driver continued. “At Williams, I saw the potential to start a great story.

“I spoke at length with James [Vowles, Team Principal] about the project he had in mind and I decided to bet on Williams because it seemed like the best opportunity to build a top team.

“Six months into this journey, I can say I’m even more convinced than when I signed. We’re all working 100 per cent to achieve this goal.”

READ MORE – Why Carlos Sainz is ‘not caring so much’ about points picture in F1 2025

The post Carlos Sainz has drawn ‘own conclusions’ on Mercedes and Red Bull F1 snubs appeared first on Motorsport Week.

Williams left Barcelona with more questions than answers, as familiar struggles resurfaced at a track that continues to highlight a key limitation the team must overcome ahead of Formula 1’s 2026 rules reset.

Both drivers were in the wars, with Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon each suffering front wing damage – Albon twice during the Spanish Grand Prix.

First, his front-end plate was damaged when Liam Lawson, unable to avoid Fernando Alonso at Turn 1, triggered a chain reaction that saw Nico Hulkenberg collide with his FW47.

Sainz also picked up damage in the chaos, forcing both Williams drivers to pit early and rejoin the race at the back of the grid.

Then, on Lap 26, the Anglo-Thai racing driver came together with Lawson again, breaking his front wing for a second time, sending him into a premature retirement.

After serving a penalty for the collision, he retired to save the car and limit further damage.

Despite the on-track clashes, Albon’s main concern after the race was the pace of the car and how Barcelona once again exposed Williams’ persistent weaknesses.

“We’re not this ultra-midfield car that’s quick everywhere, we still have our flaws and our weaknesses,” he told media including Motorsport Week.

“It’s a clear trend now that pretty much everyone around us has already upgraded, so we will inevitably pull down the pecking order eventually.

“We need to look at this track and understand why it is always the circuit that hurts us. We know it’s long corners, but we need to understand why the long corners.”

Albon sees value in struggles as Williams targets long-term solutions

Albon acknowledged the relief of moving past the difficult Spanish GP weekend, but he emphasised the value of racing on tracks that exposed Williams limitations.

“It might sound weird, but I enjoy coming to these tracks,” he added.

“I want us to be a top team, and I know that these are the tracks that we need to be better at, if we are going to be one.

“It’s good to take our medicine and to understand it, and to really put the car to the test.

“Look at it, see it visually, we’ve got a lot to do here, let’s really get on top of it.

“We’ve improved the car everywhere, and we’ve definitely improved the car in long corners, but it’s still a step behind some of the others.”

Regarding whether the 2026 regulation changes might resolve Williams’ struggles at circuits like Barcelona, Albon remained cautious.

“Maybe, but cars carry DNA, and we know that if we don’t fix it, if we don’t understand it this year, we won’t understand it next year,” he explained. “So we do need to be good at that.”

However, looking ahead to the next race in Canada, the 29-year-old was more optimistic, noting that the characteristics of the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve better suit Williams.

“We’re good on ride, we’re good on low downforce, so that works well for us,” Albon stated. “We’re generally quite good in low-speed corners.”

FW47’s track sensitivity laid bare as Sainz calls for consistency gains

Ahead of the Spanish GP, Sainz was clear about the FW47’s limitations, saying that if he had to design a track the car would excel at, Barcelona wouldn’t be it.

The Spaniard pointed to the car’s struggle with “medium-speed, long-duration corners” as a key weakness, with Williams having not reached Q3 in Barcelona since 2017.

When asked if, given Williams’ lack of speed, he felt the weekend was a write-off, Sainz largely agreed – though with the added disappointment of it being his home race.

“It’s my home Grand Prix, so for everything to go wrong on your home Grand Prix is disappointing, and shows that as a team we have still a lot to learn in tracks like Barcelona, to know where to set up the car, how to make it work in a track like this,” he told media including Motorsport Week.

“So, yeah, plenty to focus on, plenty to work around.

“Now we will go back and do our due diligence to see what we could have done better this weekend.”

Looking ahead, Sainz expressed hope for better results at upcoming races but acknowledged there are still several circuits where Williams will likely struggle, given the car’s current performance.

“Yeah, I think we have better weekends coming our way, for sure,” he said.

“I think our next tough ones will probably be Zandvoort and Qatar.

“Those will be for sure tough for our car, but at the same time, I feel like we as a team need to make sure we understand why our car is weak in these sort of tracks, and make sure that next year the car has less performance deviation between our good tracks and our bad tracks.

“In the end, you see McLaren is strong in Barcelona, but it’s not like they’re weak in other tracks, or vice versa, no, they just have an old rounder, and this is what we need to look forward to.”

READ MORE – Why Carlos Sainz is ‘not caring so much’ about points picture in F1 2025

The post How Spain exposed Williams weakness that needs fixing despite 2026 F1 rules reset appeared first on Motorsport Week.

Carlos Sainz has claimed that he is “not caring so much” about the points total he accumulates in 2025 as he continues to get up to speed with Williams in Formula 1.

Sainz and Alex Albon have capitalised on the Grove-based squad’s much-improved FW47 package to land points on all but one occasion over the opening eight races.

The overriding anticipation that Sainz would retain the edge over his new stablemate hasn’t materialised, though, as he has bagged 12 points compared to Albon’s 42.

Sainz has outqualified Albon twice in the past three events, but damage in Miami and a strategic error at Imola dropped him behind his team-mate in those two races.

And having conceded that he could need up to 10 weekends to dial out the habits he grasped at Ferrari, Sainz has denied that he is concerned about the sizeable gap.

Instead, Sainz has elucidated that he is placing a greater emphasis on ensuring that he and the team can hit the ground running when the regulations change in 2026.

“I’m very happy with these first eight races,” Sainz told media including Motorsport Week. “Happy with the results and the momentum the team is carrying.

“If you had asked me a year ago, when I signed the contract, that in some qualifyings we would be only three tenths off pole and beating a Ferrari or Red Bull or Mercedes,

I would have definitely signed the contract even earlier and even happier. The team is on a very strong trajectory.

“My adaptation process is going well, even though I don’t have all the points in the championship that I think my performance should reflect.

“Points is not something I’m caring so much about this year.

“I’m caring more about the speed I have with the car, the way I feel with the car, and how we can improve both the handling of the car and how we handle weekends, strategy, and execution.

“That’s been a bit of our weaker point. That’s why we don’t have many points in the championship.

“But as long as the speed is there and I’m quick with the car, this will come with more races.”

Williams poised to be in damage limitation mode in Spain

Williams has brought both cars home inside the top 10 in the last four races, but Sainz has warned this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix could spell a halt to that streak.

However, he has recognised that the nine-time Constructors’ Champions are now in a position where scoring points on weaker weekends remains a realistic ambition.

“Probably, if I had to design a track for the FW47, it wouldn’t look like Barcelona,” he highlighted. “We don’t tend to like medium-speed, long-duration corners.

“But I’m hopeful. It’s a track where we can also show the progress that we’ve made over the last few years.

“Apparently, the team was P19 and P20 here last year. We haven’t reached Q3 since 2020, Q2 since 2021. That kind of speaks to the kind of track we’re facing this weekend.

“But I’m confident that this year’s car is a step better in all these corners and we’re going to show better performance.”

He added: “I think the best example is still Monaco. I think we were all expecting to perform a bit better in Monaco, but we did some mistakes with set-up choices and the way we did our tyre prep in quali that compromised our performance that weekend.

“We came out finishing P9 and P10 and we were frustrated.

“I think if you had asked Williams a year ago about a P9 and P10, a double points finish, it would have been a great result and the team would be celebrating.

“A year later, it’s not enough. We know we can do better than that.

“Barcelona might be a weekend where a P9 and P10 is a good result. We need to keep that in mind.

“I think we’re heading into our most challenging track since China. A lot of new things to look into with the change of regulation [on the front wing].

“So we’re going to need to keep a good eye on how the weekend develops and see if we can perform at a good level. I’m confident we can, but on paper, it’s not the best track.”

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