Vowles Confident Williams Won’t Start 2026 on the ‘Back Foot’ Despite Early Setbacks

Williams Racing has faced a bumpy start to its 2026 pre-season preparations, but team principal James Vowles remains upbeat about the squad's position heading into the new era of Formula 1. The team skipped last week's Barcelona Shakedown—the first official outing for the all-new 2026 cars—due to delays in the FW48 development program as they focused on maximizing car performance.

While competitors hit the track in Barcelona, Williams opted for a private Virtual Track Testing (VTT) session and intensive simulator work with drivers Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon. This alternative approach, combined with valuable data from Mercedes' reliable power unit and gearbox, has Vowles convinced that the team won't be playing catch-up.

Speaking at the team's livery launch on Tuesday, Vowles reflected on the missed opportunity: “I would have much preferred to have been in Barcelona. That was the goal, that was what we were intending to do, and we did not achieve it.”

However, he emphasized the productivity of their behind-the-scenes efforts: “What we did in terms of a week’s worth of VTT that was successful, and what we’ve been doing with both Carlos [Sainz] and Alex [Albon] on the driver-in-loop simulator in tandem... In addition, and we are fortunate that Mercedes had sufficient runners, so there was quite a bit of information coming back on the gearbox and power unit that enables us to get ahead when we come to Bahrain, means I do not believe with six days of testing we’ll be on the back foot.”

Vowles acknowledged some gaps, particularly in real-world data for aerodynamics and vehicle dynamics, which can only be validated on track. Yet, he praised the state-of-the-art driver-in-loop simulator—installed at the end of last year—as a key mitigator: “We are able to mitigate a lot of those.” He described it as “the benchmark in the business.”

Looking broader, Vowles assessed Williams' trajectory after a strong 2025 season where they climbed to fifth in the Constructors' Championship. “We’re not naïve about the challenge ahead of us or the challenge that’s amongst us right now,” he said. “The jump from fifth to fourth is in my experience exponentially more difficult than what we’ve already achieved.”

The team boss stressed the need for bold decisions to progress: “The only way to achieve that against competitors who themselves are striving and moving forward, is simply by pushing the absolute boundaries and being brave in the decisions you’re making.”

Williams doesn't anticipate championship contention but aims to build on 2025 as a baseline. Vowles noted uncertainty around the Melbourne opener: “Nobody... really knows what’s going to happen in Melbourne. There’s a development race, and it depends on what parts people bring, but also it looks interesting, certainly in the top five.”

The team is set to return to action at the official pre-season tests in Bahrain later this month, with Vowles urging focus: “Our key point at the moment is to make sure that we push like mad, catch up, go to Bahrain with our heads held high, and keep moving forward.”