Carlos Sainz admits to being puzzled: “I don’t know where the pace and feeling I had in testing have gone”. Carlos Sainz admitted to the difficulties encountered in China.

Great start
Even before the start of this championship, Williams Team Principal James Vowles had been quite honest about the objectives of the Grove-based team, primarily focused on 2026 with more challenging goals for this season. The 2025 calendar still has a large number of races to go, but the fact remains that, at least judging by the results of the first two GPs, Williams has finished in the points in both rounds—perhaps with the driver least expected to do so.

Alex Albon’s repeat performance
After finishing 5th in Australia, Alexander Albon secured another top-10 finish in China, crossing the line in 9th place before being promoted to 7th following the disqualifications of the two Ferrari SF-25 cars of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton. A result that redeems a less impressive Sprint race, as admitted by the Anglo-Thai driver himself, who is now 6th in the world championship standings with a total of 16 points: “Considering the Sprint race, this was a huge step forward for us and shows the progress we have made as a team,” he said at the end of the GP. “It proves that we are capable of solving the issues we have with our car, which is a huge improvement compared to last year. We learned a lot from the Sprint to the race, and we can apply this knowledge to many races throughout the rest of the year. It’s very valuable. Historically, this track hasn’t suited us very well, but we still scored points! I’m very happy.”

Carlos Sainz’s questions
After his crash in Australia, the Chinese GP would have ended outside the points for Carlos Sainz, but he was promoted to 10th place following the aforementioned disqualifications of the Ferraris and Pierre Gasly, marking his first top-10 finish at the wheel of the Williams: “It was a strange and very difficult weekend for me,” he commented. “To be honest, I’m a bit puzzled because ever since I got into the car in testing in Abu Dhabi and Bahrain, I was immediately quick, but I don’t know where the pace and the feeling with the car have gone. We got the strategy right, but we lacked the pace to move forward, and fuel saving didn’t help us either. We have ten days to analyze everything and come up with a plan to be stronger in Japan. Head down and let’s keep pushing.” – the former Ferrari driver concluded.