Williams left the qualifying session for the Belgian Grand Prix of Formula 1 with mixed feelings among its drivers. While Carlos Sainz celebrated overcoming problems that affected the entire weekend so far, Alex Albon regretted missing out on Q2 after setup changes that did not have the expected effect.
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Even having to start only from 15th position, Sainz considered it positive that the team finally found a solution to a problem that had been compromising the car’s performance since the first free practice sessions. Albon, 17th placed, believes Williams missed an opportunity to advance in the session.
“It has been a difficult weekend so far. We were dealing with a problem in all practice sessions, so it was a relief to find a solution for qualifying and make the car work as it should,” said the Spaniard.
Sainz highlighted that reaching Q2 represented a small gain in a complicated scenario: “Getting into Q2 was a positive thing, with some good laps and extracting everything from the car,” he said, now aiming for a clean race to try to move up the grid.
The Williams driver admitted, however, that scoring points will depend on external factors: “Tomorrow will be about running a clean race and avoiding any drama around us. We will need a bit of chaos to stay within points range, so we will try to take advantage of every opportunity that arises,” he stated.
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On the other side of the garage, Albon showed frustration at the below-expectation result. According to him, the car had been showing consistent behavior throughout the weekend, but changes made between FP3 and qualifying ended up compromising performance.
“It’s frustrating not to make it to Q2 after feeling the car was in a good window all weekend. We made some setup changes between FP3 and qualifying, but they were too aggressive,” he added.
The Thai-British driver highlighted that the team had been gradually improving at Spa: “We were in a good rhythm with the car and improving little by little. Now, we need to see what will be possible to do tomorrow, remembering that there are some grid penalties, which will leave some cars out of position,” he concluded.
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