The Spanish Williams driver, who finished 17th at Suzuka, is convinced that the upcoming pause in the calendar will allow the Grove-based team to improve the performance of the FW48.
No miracles at Suzuka
Williams’ difficult run of results continued at the Japanese Grand Prix, where the team once again struggled to be competitive. After Carlos Sainz secured a promising ninth-place finish in China, there had been cautious optimism within the Grove outfit heading into Suzuka. However, the Spanish driver had already set realistic expectations during the pre-weekend press conference, openly admitting that the FW48 was still too heavy and that he was not expecting any kind of “miracle” on the Japanese circuit.
Break until Miami
The race result ultimately confirmed those concerns, with Carlos Sainz finishing only 15th. Reflecting on his performance, the former Ferrari driver explained: “We got the maximum out of the car. Another solid start and a well-executed pit stop allowed us to deliver the best race we possibly could, so I’m satisfied. The team and I are working well together to understand this car and these regulations, and I feel that we will approach this early break ready to make real progress in terms of performance.”
Carlos Sainz also emphasized the importance of making the most of the upcoming five-week gap in the calendar: “We need to make sure we use these five weeks in the best possible way and arrive in Miami in a better position for the rest of the season.” He concluded by expressing relief following Oliver Bearman’s heavy crash, adding: “I’m very happy that Ollie is okay after the big impact.”
It was an even more challenging Sunday for teammate Alex Albon, who finished 20th and last among the classified drivers. The Thai driver described a quiet and uneventful race, explaining: “I was stuck in traffic during the race, so nothing really happened for me, and it effectively turned into a kind of test session, as we wanted to try some things on the front wing to better understand it and gather data.”
Alex Albon nevertheless highlighted some positives regarding the car’s behavior and the team’s efforts: “The car behaves reasonably well considering our characteristics, and the team has worked hard to bring it to a good level over these three weeks. Realistically, we are achieving what we can and executing our races as well as possible, but we need to fix a few issues and find a bit more speed.”
Looking ahead, Alex Albon also underlined the importance of the upcoming development period: “We have a lot of work to do, but now we have around five weeks available as a team, so there is plenty we can improve, and I think this will help us come back stronger in Miami.”
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