The last race before the summer break was the chaotic and unpredictable British Grand Prix at Silverstone, which was heavily influenced by the ever-changing weather conditions typical of England. After a promising start to the 2025 Formula 1 season, Williams Racing now appears to be struggling, having collected only eight points across the last five Grands Prix.
At Silverstone, it was Alexander Albon who salvaged points for the team with a solid eighth-place finish, while Carlos Sainz Jr., who joined Williams this year after leaving Scuderia Ferrari, was left outside the top 10. The Spanish driver finished in 12th position after contact with his former teammate Charles Leclerc, which caused damage to his FW47 and ruined any chance of finishing in the points. Team Principal James Vowles has now addressed the incident and provided insight into the problems the team faced, while also confirming upcoming upgrades for the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps.
Silverstone weekend analysis
Racing in wet conditions is always a major challenge, not just for drivers but also for engineers and strategists, who must continuously adapt to rapidly evolving grip levels and visibility on track. James Vowles explained the complexity of such races: “Wet races are often more entertaining because you don’t have simulations or tools that replicate the conditions as accurately as they do in dry races. Dry races are much more predictable—you see the track rubbering in, which increases grip in a foreseeable way. You can also analyze tyre degradation clearly and decide whether it’s a one-stop or two-stop strategy, and whether the medium compound is better than the hard.”
At Silverstone, however, the conditions began changing even before the race officially started. The formation lap was run in the rain, but the lights went out under a brief window of sunshine. Several Safety Cars were deployed throughout the race due to visibility-related incidents and changing grip levels.
“In intermediate conditions, like those we saw at Silverstone, where the track dries, then gets wet again, and then dries once more, you need to use a completely different set of tools,” said Vowles. “You must be reactive and trust your instincts. Sometimes it’s about trying something the moment you feel it could work—just as the drivers believe it might be ready.”
The race also featured two off-camera collisions between Carlos Sainz Jr. and Charles Leclerc. In the first incident, Charles Leclerc passed Sainz on the inside at Turn 4, an aggressive move that left the Spanish driver frustrated and calling for an investigation by the race stewards. The second incident, however, had more serious consequences: while attempting an overtake around the outside of Turn 15 (Stowe), Sainz was hit by Leclerc, who lost control of his Ferrari and collided with the side of the Williams.
James Vowles clarified the extent of the damage: “Unfortunately for Carlos, when he was running in a strong position, Leclerc had a slide through Stowe and hit him. The damage was significant—it affected both the front wing and the floor of the car. We estimate the time loss to be around half a second per lap, which was enough to take him completely out of contention for the points.”
Belgium upgrades and ongoing cooling issues
Since the start of the year, Williams Racing has been clear about prioritising development for the major regulation overhaul in 2026. That made the team’s early-season form all the more surprising, as both drivers consistently fought in the midfield and scored points.
However, during the European rounds of the championship, the FW47 has no longer served as a benchmark for midfield performance. Rivals have introduced successful upgrades, and Williams has struggled with reliability concerns. The team is now facing difficulties particularly in qualifying, as seen once again at Silverstone.
“What we’re seeing lately is that the FW47 is still capable of being a strong race car,” Vowles explained. “At the end of the British Grand Prix, when the track dried and conditions stabilised, our pace was solid. But we weren’t quick enough during the intermediate phases or in qualifying—those are two key areas we absolutely must address moving forward.”
To help turn the tide, Williams is bringing updates to the next round in Belgium: “After a very strong start, we’ve now dropped back a bit, simply because other teams have improved their cars. We have a small update coming for Spa. Our job now is to capitalise fully on the performance the car already has. There are still points to be scored from now until the end of the season. What matters is executing clean weekends and seizing every opportunity that comes our way.”
During the free practice sessions at Silverstone, the team also focused heavily on the cooling systems, which have proven problematic in recent rounds. The team’s most difficult race so far was the Austrian Grand Prix, where both cars retired due to reliability issues.
“We’ve been held back by cooling problems for several races this season, most notably in Austria where we had both cars in competitive positions before being forced to retire,” Vowles noted. “In FP1 at Silverstone, we ran a very different program compared to the rest of the grid, as we were actively testing solutions. We tried separate setups between Alexander and Carlos. We now have solutions that allow us to run the car through a race, but those solutions come at the expense of performance. Ideally, what we want are mitigation strategies that ensure we don’t sacrifice lap time. The team is working hard behind the scenes to make sure we fix this issue.”
Looking ahead to the second half of the season
With the second half of the 2025 Formula 1 season about to begin in Belgium, the team is hoping for a turnaround—especially for Carlos Sainz Jr., whose first season with Williams has been plagued by misfortune and inconsistency.
“We haven’t yet unlocked the full potential with Carlos this season,” said Vowles. “It’s been a mixed bag—some mistakes from him, some errors on our pit wall, and of course some unfortunate incidents. For me, it’s about drawing a line and starting fresh from Spa onward. We have a number of circuits coming up where we believe the car can perform well. What matters now is maximising results, especially in qualifying, and understanding why we’re not always getting the most out of the package.”
Vowles concluded with a clear objective: “Carlos and the team can still achieve strong results this season. It’s just about executing our weekends cleanly and delivering the performance that we know is in the car. We haven’t done that consistently this year—but we know we can.”
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