The last few years have been difficult for Williams, whose long-term goals have necessitated short-term sacrifices. It could be a similar story for the team in 2025, which will act as a transitional year before the 2026 regulations.
Team principal James Vowles makes no secret that the majority of the team’s efforts are being diverted to 2026. Both in terms of financial resources and designated personnel, the lion’s share of focus at Williams is on the new regulations.
Still, with the arrival of a 4-time winner in Carlos Sainz, there is pressure to show some kind of progression this season.
Looking ahead to the new season, Sainz admits it will take time to be fully comfortable in the car.
Sainz: Limited testing compromises integration period
With the established top four teams likely to remain at the front, fighting for points in the midfield will be extremely difficult once again.
This means Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz, widely seen as one of F1’s best driver line-ups, will be called upon to make the difference in 2025.
Having spent the best part of a decade fighting for wins and podiums, Sainz is undoubtedly a huge addition for Williams.
To a large extent, the big question is whether Williams provide the Spaniard a car that is competitive enough to fight for points consistently.
Of course, this does not mean Sainz is expecting to deliver his best performances immediately.
The 30-year-old anticipates it won’t be until the summer break that he can extract the maximum from his FW47.
“That adaptation process – with only three days of testing, which is one and a half [days] per driver – my experience tells me it takes around half a year to really understand all the tricks and the little details on the car.
“If testing would exist [longer], that process would be a lot shorter,” Sainz explained last week.
“There’s so many things that you need to go weekend by weekend learning and experiencing.
Formula One World Championship, Atlassian Williams Racing FW47 Launch, Silverstone, England, Friday 14th February 2025.
A learning curve for driver and team
It goes without saying that Carlos Sainz would rather fight for race wins than top 10 finishes.
Therefore, if Williams are in the midfield once again, the next twelve months could be difficult for the Spaniard to swallow.
Then again, he is fully aware of the opportunity that 2026 presents.
Not just for the team, but also for Sainz himself, the next twelve months will be critical for integration:
“This doesn’t mean that you can’t be competitive. I believe that if you are good at adapting and you do a good winter with your team, you can be competitive straight away.
“But there’s always the last tenth or the last two tenths of the car that you learn as the year goes by.
“And you start to work better with your engineers, better with the team, and you start instructing performance.
“Not only from your side of the car but also from everyone around you, all your engineers from different departments.
“You just try to start maximising everyone to your advantage. Again, it doesn’t mean that I cannot be competitive or we cannot be competitive straight away.
“But really, really extracting that last tenth of the car always takes a bit of time.”
