Williams driver Alex Albon says he took Carlos Sainz’s high-profile arrival at Williams as a optimistic because the pair pushes each one another and the group ahead forward of Formulation 1’s 2026 overhaul.
After shedding his Ferrari seat to seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, Sainz abruptly turned probably the most engaging free agent in the marketplace for 2025, with Williams beating Sauber and Alpine to the Spaniard’s signature.
The signing of a confirmed grand prix winner was an enormous coup for Williams, which had beforehand fielded a sequence of much less skilled drivers as Albon’s team-mate together with Logan Sargeant, Franco Colapinto and Nicholas Latifi.
He additionally offered an enormous check for incumbent Albon, who responded to the problem along with his most persistently robust season thus far, edging his team-mate in qualifying by 8-6 to date. That comes with the caveat that Sainz wanted time to gel along with his new equipment, which was very totally different to drive in contrast with the Ferrari he was accustomed to.
Albon’s 54 factors additionally places him properly forward of Sainz’s 16, though the latter has confronted the brunt of the reliability points and technique slip-ups to date, resulting in a number of missed alternatives so as to add to his tally.
Carlos Sainz, Williams
Photograph by: Sam Bloxham / LAT Photographs by way of Getty Photographs
Sitting down with Motorsport.com to evaluation his 2025 season up to now, Albon stated: “I can not complain when it comes to my very own efficiency. I really feel like I have been capable of have strong weekends and there is by no means been a weekend that is gone disastrously. They’ve all the time had robust peaks, for instance.
“I am fairly inner when it comes to how I validate my very own performances. I really feel like I’ve simply been getting on with my very own job and executing properly. The group has given me an excellent automobile, and I have been capable of do these P5s and P6s; outcomes that stand out.
“I truly suppose my course of and the best way I work has been similar since my earlier years. There have been small enhancements, as there are yearly, however I am pleased with myself up to now this 12 months. I feel it has been actually constant.”
“I really feel like we have gone about our methods pretty quietly, not making errors, executing strong weekends, taking benefits of moments, whether or not it is with technique or circumstances, simply being very strong.”
Having been Williams’ bedrock for years, Albon says he took the flurry of consideration on Sainz “as a optimistic” and located his new team-mate to be each an excellent benchmark for him on the observe, and for the squad as a complete off the observe because of Sainz’s high group know-how and technical potential.
Alexander Albon, Williams
Photograph by: Zak Mauger / LAT Photographs by way of Getty Photographs
“I feel it is inevitable,” Albon stated in regards to the media highlight shifting to his team-mate firstly of the 12 months. “It was a implausible signing for the group to have somebody with Carlos’ expertise and his velocity. And clearly he turned a right away benchmark for me.
“Then it is as much as the driving force to sort of go: ‘How do I take that power?’ You may take it positively or negatively. I consider I took it positively and I all the time wished Carlos to affix the group. And on my facet, he was an excellent benchmark, as a result of I generally felt virtually discredited with the team-mates I had earlier than. I feel Logan, Franco and Nicholas have all the time been robust drivers in moments of their profession at Williams, and it was good to sort of have somebody like Carlos, who got here off a robust 12 months from Ferrari.”
Beneath group boss James Vowles, Williams’ long-term concentrate on 2026 and past additionally helped the Grove-based squad discover loads of low-hanging fruit to revamp its improvement pathways, permitting it to start out the 12 months on the entrance foot for the primary time in years, and maintain fifth positioned within the constructors’ desk into the summer time break.
“We clearly began the 12 months in a very good place,” stated Albon, who claimed three high 5 finishes as a part of his 9 grand prix factors finishes. “That P5 [in the Australia season opener] simply created that nice power, but in addition settled everybody. ‘Okay, we are able to do that, we’ve automobile.’
“We noticed in winter testing in Bahrain we had automobile, Melbourne cemented that. After which we might simply get into our season. And it is not been a season like others, the place we have needed to take dangers and do various things when it comes to technique to get factors. So long as we preserve it clear and we do job, do job in qualifying, we’ll be okay for the remainder of the 12 months.”
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