Photo: Race Pictures

Williams faces challenge after missing Barcelona pre-season testing and are 'on the back foot'

17:30, 03 Feb

Updated: 17:53, 03 Feb

bySavannah Lenz

After missing the first round of pre-season testing in Barcelona, Williams team principal James Vowles identifies a major issue facing the team.

Unlike the other 10 teams, Williams was not able to test at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. This was due to "delays in the FW48 programme", as the team spent more time refining it's car for the 2026 season.

When asked by GPblog what issues missing the test in Barcelona had created for Williams, Vowles said, "Top of the priority list for me is we have not got a characterisation of our aerodynamic package or our vehicle dynamics package or suspension.

"You can do everything in a rig world, in a simulation world, but you need to have it properly characterised and correlated in order to be able to ensure that you haven't taken the wrong turn somewhere. That's the biggest missing piece."

However, one thing Vowles is not worried about is the 'driver load' of his 2026 line-up - Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz. As both Albon and Sainz drove for Williams last year, they are heading into the new season with stability.

Photo: Williams F1 Team

"I'm not worried about the driver load. There is definitely more driver load. It's a very different way of driving the car or using the electrical systems. I'm not worried about that."

He continued, "We've replicated that very well in our driver-in-loop simulator. That's why we invested tens of millions in that facility. And every track is so different that the specifics of Barcelona don't necessarily carry on through into Bahrain or Melbourne."

Williams faces challenges

Williams has officially launched the FW48 and set to attend Bahrain's preseason testing, which will help it gather valuable data.

We don't expect a piece of fighting for the championship

- James Vowles

Williams shares the same engine as Mercedes, Alpine, and McLaren, where the new power-unit was reliable and the only one to complete over 1,000 laps.

In that respect, Vowles has a good understanding of its reliability. However, they were unable to collect aero data for the FW48, which Vowles sees as a potential issue.

When asked about the test in Bahrain and making up for lost time, he added:"It's that characterisation, so making sure that there's no nasty surprises, and if there's not, then it probably won't be too nasty. But if there's anything, then it puts us on the back foot by a week or so."

'The New Era'

In the same media session attended by GPblog, Vowles spoke about the new rules that have seen sweeping design chances, saying the new era has the potential to reset the pecking order. He said, "Looking ahead to this year, I'm really excited, personally, as the sport enters a new era. And even from the testing, you can see it's a little bit unpredictable to understand who's where and at what stage.

"This is a chance for us to really keep moving forward as an organisation. We still have Carlos and Alex, which is an absolutely fantastic lineup, and even more important in this regulation set, because the load on the driver goes up, everyone's pretty much assessed that, and you need experience and ability and high-level intelligence in the car, which they both hold, in order to get the most out of it."

The Briton added: "We're not naive about the challenge ahead of us or the challenge that's amongst us right now. The jump from fifth to fourth is, in my experience, exponentially more difficult than what we've already achieved.

Photo: Williams F1 Team

"The only way to achieve that against competitors themselves that are striving and moving forward, is simply by pushing the absolute boundaries and being brave in the decisions you're making."

In regard to the 2026 season, Vowles is confident about their ability to compete, though uncertain about where they will fall in the pack.

"We don't expect a piece of fighting for the championship, but we do expect '25 to be our new established baseline, to keep moving the business forward year on year from then onwards. Nobody, and I'm sure you realise this as well, really knows what's going to happen in Melbourne," he said.

"It's both a development race, it depends what parts people bring, but also it looks interesting, certainly in the top five, I would say. So our key point at the moment is to make sure that we push like mad, catch up and go to Bahrain with our heads held high and keep moving forward."

Williams is set to attend both rounds of the preseason testing taking place in Bahrain. The first round will kick off on 11th February with the second round taking place from the 18th-20th February.

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