Alex Albon did not hide his pessimism about Williams’ progress in the 2026 Formula 1 season. Even acknowledging the effort made by the team to fix old problems, the driver doubts that the major update planned for Baku will be enough to change the scenario.
Read more F1: McLaren keeps dream of third constructors’ title despite disadvantage
At the moment, Williams currently occupies ninth position in the constructors’ championship, ahead only of Aston Martin and the newcomer Cadillac. Albon and Carlos Sainz have been struggling to regularly enter the points zone, while both have expressed dissatisfaction with the performance of the FW48.
In an interview with Motorsport.com during the Hungarian GP weekend, Albon acknowledged that the team identified the main weaknesses of the car and is working to solve them: “We know what the weaknesses of the car are, we know the directions. I think, as a team, the work being done at the factory this year is the biggest effort I’ve ever seen to really tackle the genetic problems this team has,” he said.
Despite the praise for the internal work, the Thai-British driver does not believe the update in Baku will immediately solve the difficulties: “Will this be solved in Baku? I doubt it. I think a lot of things have already happened. This update was planned a long time ago,” he explained.
The driver also revealed the impact of the FW48’s limitations on his own driving: “Honestly, from a driving point of view, it’s frustrating because I can’t really drive. The team isn’t able to get the best out of me because I have to drive well below the limit,” he concluded.
Read more F1: Max Verstappen’s future may include a stint in NASCAR
While Albon adopted a cautious and even pessimistic tone, Williams boss James Vowles maintained a more confident stance during the August break. He stated that the results on track do not reflect the work done behind the scenes and assured that the team intends to use the period to rest and identify new areas for development.
“Our commitment to you is that we will do everything we can to find every available millisecond,” said Vowles. The manager added that some of the positive changes are not yet visible in the results and that the team intends to return ‘energized and ready to finish the year strong’.
Pressure on Williams is increasing in the face of Aston Martin’s signs of recovery, which presented a major update in Hungary and managed to get closer to the points zone. This contrast reinforces the need for the Grove team to turn its development work into results in the second half of the season.
Read more F1: Red Bull moves forward with signing key Aston Martin player
