Williams driver Carlos Sainz called out the team’s mentality heading into a crucial 2026 season.
The upcoming season is set to bring one of the biggest changes in regulations since 2022, providing the chance for a massive grid shake-up.
A team like Williams, which currently fields a competitive midfield car, has the opportunity to rise the grid into potential podium places if they nail their car next year.
Sainz joined the Grove-based racing team with the hopes of 2026 and beyond being a renaissance period for Williams.
For the climb up the order, the former Ferrari driver believes that the car needs to be versatile, rather than generating inconsistent performances at different tracks.
“It’s [Hungaroring] always been a difficult track for the team,” Sainz said.
“We had quite a long debrief after qualifying because obviously I’m coming from the team that was on pole, going back to a team that was P13 with me.
“I could give them very strong feedback on why this car is lagging around a track like this. Obviously, for this year we cannot do anything, but for the future, hopefully it’s a very big learning curve for the team to know how we need to develop the Formula 1 car to be successful and competitive, also in tracks like Budapest or Barcelona.
“We have relatively poor aero characteristics in long corners where you need to hold the downforce from entry to mid-corner. We struggle with these kind of things.
“It’s been a trend for a very long time. That’s why long straights and sharp short corners is good for the team. But at the moment we get into long combined corners of Barcelona, Hungary, Qatar – the car really struggles.
“It needs a very big design philosophy change for the future. We’re trying to understand where and what to change to make sure that next year’s car is a bit more of an all-rounder and gives us a better platform to work in multiple tracks.”
Williams is fifth in the Constructors’ Standings with 70 points. They are 18 points clear of Aston Martin, who sit at 52 points.
Over the past couple of races, Aston Martin have started gaining ground, finishing higher than Williams and looking like a renewed contender for the best of the rest.
Alex Albon is responible for 54 points while Sainz only has 16 points to his name despite there being pace in the car.
While next season is the priority for Sainz, he will need to assert himself as the top driver and prove himself at his new team.
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