Carlos Sainz reveals 'very big contrasts' at Williams

Carlos Sainz has reflected on the "very big contrasts" he encountered during his first season with Williams, as the team continues its recovery to competitiveness in F1.

The nine-time constructors' champions had fallen into relative obscurity, but under the leadership of team principal James Vowles, the Grove-based squad has risen from the foot of the standings to the front of the midfield.

Whilst the incoming regulations cycle has long been circled as the point at which Williams wants to start fighting for more than consistent points finishes, the capture of Sainz was a key milestone in its revival.

Although the Spanish driver took half a season or so to become comfortable in his new surroundings, something he maintained would be the case, the four-time grand prix winner was able to deliver two grand prix podiums — and a sprint top three — in the final eight rounds of the 2025 campaign.

Those were the first trips to the rostrum for a Williams driver since George Russell in 2021. However, with that race lasting fewer than a handful of laps, it was the first full-distance podium for the team since Lance Stroll's third place at the 2017 Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

Williams had endured a difficult 2024 season, but the step forward was immediately obvious to Sainz when he got into the cockpit of the FW47 for testing in Bahrain.

"After a tough end to 2024, with a lot of crashes, lacking parts, and being slow in Abu Dhabi, James was like, 'Next year’s car is going to be okay. We’re going to be quick. It’s going to be a good step'," he told F1.com.

"The moment we put the new car on track for testing in Bahrain, I realised how much of a big step the team had done.

"But then, as much as he told me those positives, James also said, 'You’re going to see some very big flaws that we have as a team at the moment'. He was very honest about it, he spoke sense, and he was very realistic."

No 'nasty surprises'

A central pillar of Vowles' revival of the fallen giant he now leads has been his modernisation project.

When he took the helm at the start of 2023, it became evident that considerable parts of the team's facilities and infrastructure were considerably out of date.

Sainz explained the juxtaposition he found within, given how much more developed some aspects were than he had first envisaged.

"The thing about Williams is there are so many areas where the team is closer to the top than what I would have expected it to be, but then I also found some other areas that we are very far behind," the 31-year-old said.

"For me, it’s about being very vocal and very clear about the areas that are not good enough.

"There are very big contrasts in this team. You have incredibly talented people, you have very good ideas, but then there are other things – processes, tools, simulation – where the team is really, really far behind.

"It’s how we accelerate the process, and everyone’s working flat-out to develop those weaknesses to make sure we are a top team."

Sainz credited the open and honest approach employed by Vowles and the team's owners, allowing him to avoid being caught off guard by any "nasty surprises" when he joined from Ferrari.

"I feel like the good thing is the management, in this case, James and [Dorilton Capital] were always super honest to me about them," he said.

"All of the [weaknesses] have been briefed, I haven’t found any nasty surprises, and I’ve just gone into it being realistic, knowing that the only thing I can do is give my best to try and help."