Williams’ Vowles Praises Sainz’s Impact Amid Strong Start to Season

GROVE, England — James Vowles, the team principal of Williams Racing, expressed his enthusiasm for Carlos Sainz‘s early contributions to the team following the Bahrain Grand Prix weekend. Vowles stated that he feels he is getting ‘more than I paid for’ from Sainz, who has adapted quickly to the squad and has impressed with his collaborative efforts to enhance performance.

Sainz, a four-time race winner, joined Williams after leaving Ferrari, which signed Lewis Hamilton for the 2025 season. Vowles’s excitement over securing the Spaniard’s talent has proven well-founded as the team has started the season positively, finishing consistently within the points in the first three races.

‘I think we’re getting more than I paid for from Sainz,’ Vowles remarked. ‘There’s two different ways to assess performance. In the car, he’s making steps forward; I’m very comfortable that he will be on the pace shortly. But I’ve been especially impressed with his work with our aerodynamicist team and race engineering. He’s delivering absolutely above my expectations.’

After three races, Williams currently sits P5 in the championship standings, with Alex Albon achieving top-10 finishes in each event and Sainz contributing to the team’s points tally, particularly during the recent race in China. Vowles noted the competitiveness of the current grid, highlighting the importance of maintaining focus as the team aims for stronger results once Sainz fully acclimatizes to the FW47.

‘I’m really pleased with our start to the season because this is a really competitive grid now, and our focus has been on 2026,’ Vowles stated. ‘We’re in contention for points every weekend, which was our target going in.’

Sainz himself has acknowledged the adjustments he must make while transitioning to a new car, citing the challenge of adapting to the Mercedes power unit as the most significant change. He has experienced mixed results so far, with a DNF, P10, and P14 finishes over the first three races.

‘If you expect to see the best of Carlos Sainz at Williams in the third race in a new car, then you don’t understand the sport very well,’ Sainz said. ‘I still need to put a full weekend together. The speed has been there in Australia and Suzuka; I just need to execute better and reduce mistakes.’

In Japan, while Albon finished P9, Sainz ended the race P14 after suffering a grid penalty for impeding during qualifying. Despite the varied results, Sainz remains optimistic as he aims to build momentum in the coming races.

‘I’m giving myself the first quarter of the season to fully get to grips with my new car,’ Sainz explained. ‘Once I start putting everything together, I know better results will come.’