With a ninth place in the constructors’ championship, Williams is not doing as well halfway through the 2026 season as the team had hoped. The desired results have so far eluded the British team, which last year still achieved two podium finishes with Carlos Sainz. Yet team principal James Vowles remains optimistic: “We come back full of energy after the summer break and are ready to finish the year strong.”
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Williams has not scored a World Championship point since the Monaco GP and is currently in ninth place in the constructors’ championship. That result is disappointing for the British racing team, which last year was able to secure two podium places with Carlos Sainz behind the wheel. Balance issues and excess weight on the FW48 were particularly dominant during the first half of the season.
‘Results do not do justice to hard work’
On his own social media, team principal James Vowles reflected on the team’s deficit on the track on the eve of the summer break. “Although the results on the circuit do not do justice to the work behind the scenes, the summer break comes at the right time and is much needed,” he writes. “We have worked incredibly hard all year to ensure that we do everything possible to score points again.”
“We will use this time to rest and at the same time think about areas that can be improved,” continues the British team principal. “We promise you (the fans, ed.) that we will do everything we can to make the most of every available millisecond.”
Both Williams drivers, Alexander Albon and Sainz, finished seventeenth and eighteenth respectively at the Hungarian GP at the back of the grid. Nevertheless, Vowles remains convinced that structural improvements within the team will eventually bear fruit. “Many of the positive changes go unnoticed, but there are strong developments that will help us move forward year after year,” explains the team principal. “We come back full of energy and are ready to finish the year strong.”
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