Williams Racing has had a largely positive season, finding themselves in P5 in the Championship standings ahead of the F1 Azerbaijan GP.
Alex Albon has had some strong results this season, and he finished P7 in Monza. He had started P14. Carlos Sainz was heading for points as well until a collision with Ollie Bearman. He was P13 on the grid.
Experimentation during qualifying
Albon acknowledged that the team still experiments in qualifying, and even after it, and that it is something that isn’t benefiting them. He notes that this is an aspect set to change this weekend in Azerbaijan. In comparison to past weekends, Williams aim to have their plans set by Friday evening, with some small tweaks in FP3 regarding preparation.
“I think in hindsight, we should have transitioned our, stopped experimenting in qualifying. We basically carried the whole thing all the way into qualifying and then beyond. During qualifying, we’re still trying things.
“Whereas this weekend, it’s a bit more Friday, let’s see what we’ve got. There’ll be another adjustment for FP3 and then hopefully by that point, we should just stick to our guns and be like, ‘we’ve got something. It’s not perfect, but we’ve got something.’ We’ve got a consistent plan to follow and then we can just go into qualifying without the chaos.”
Tyres predicted to be the talk like in Monza
Monza saw talk about tyres and the degradation of them. Much like Monza, Albon expects the F1 Azerbaijan GP weekend to hold similar conversations. With just over a week between the two races, Albon and Williams alike have had the chance to reflect on Monza and plan for Azerbaijan.
While many different set-ups and ideas have been brought to the table, the British-Thai driver is confident. He acknowledges that once the tyres are in the correct temperature zone, he should be okay. He also explains that he believes this to be the reason that the team is slow in qualifying and quick in the race.
“I feel like it’s going to be a really similar story to Monza, where we’re going to be talking about tyres all weekend. We have had a week and a bit to sit on it and go again for this weekend. We’ve got all different set-ups and outlaps and everything to try. I think once the tyres are warm and where they should be, we’re good.
“I think partly that’s why our race pace has been so strong. It’s the reason why we’re quick in the race and why we’re slow in qualifying. But on paper, this track should suit us.”
Tyre temperature becomes a regular issue
While tyre temperature seems to be a recurring and permanent issue, Albon notes that it is not the only aspect to watch. Getting the tyres to the correct temperature, and also working in combination with each other is not a simple task. He also notes that while the second half of the season has been tough, he believes it is due to midfield teams catching up.
In past qualifying sessions, even with out the tyres being perfect, the team could still get into Q2 or Q3 fairly comfortably. At present, when their tyres aren’t ready, they are around 0.5-0.7 tenths off of P1 in Q2. Regardless, they still qualifying in positions around P13 or P14 like Monza.
The margins remain slim, but Azerbaijan is notoriously tough with tyres, and will pose great challenge.
“It’s a mix as well. We’re not just looking for tyre temperature, we’re looking for accommodation as well. We’re looking for the tyre to work. Them two together, it’s not that easy. It is interesting for us because the last few races, we’ve been struggling a bit more than we have been at the start of the year. I think it’s more that the midfield teams have caught up.
“Even when our tyres weren’t fantastic, we could still get through quite comfortably into Q3 or Q2. Whereas now, when we say about the tyres not being ready, I think we’re four tenths off P1 in Q2, let’s say. And yet, that’s P12, P13. It’s the small margins that we’re looking for, but it is what’s making the difference. On paper, this track is one of the hardest tracks to get the tyres working, so it’s going to be a challenge.”
Carlos Sainz reflects on the challenges the team may face at the F1 Azerbaijan GP
Williams have had what can only be described as a rollercoaster season. Starting off strong, it has left Carlos Sainz confused as to why their performance has dropped recently. A continuous headache has appeared when it comes to figuring out the tyres.
Despite this, he feels he has been consistently quick. He stated the following:
“Yeah it’s very puzzling how much we’ve struggled this year, is something probably my biggest headache of the year has been getting the tyres to work because I’ve been quick with the car pretty much from the get-go at the beginning of the year.”
He continued on to explain that both himself and Albon feel comfortable within the car. It’s simply this mere weakness hurting their performance on a Saturday.
“I think both Alex and I feel relatively comfortable with the car. Pretty much every weekend we only have these weaknesses when there’s this very long medium speed corner duration where we know we’re going to be weak but everywhere else the car is relatively competitive.”
Different kinds of issues for Williams through 2025 ahead of F1 Azerbaijan GP
The Spaniard explained that the only issue the FW47 has faced this season is with the tyres. He says that the randomness in the tyres ability within some circuits caused this. He adds that sometimes it isn’t just tyre prep. A new set that can change the balance of the FW47.
This has led to the Williams duo to struggle on a Saturday. This leaves them having to overexert performance in the final moments of qualifying.
In some tracks, Monza for example, it is only one aspect that affects them. at Monza that was tyre prep. Whereas some tracks have more issues at once.
Sainz cites Austria
Sainz reflects on the struggles they faced with tyres affecting balance and performance in Austria.
“The only problem that we have is this randomness of tyre prep that we get in certain tracks. Sometimes it’s not even tyre preparation, it’s how much a new tyre changes the balance of the car, and even if the tyre is working well, we are slower with a new soft tyre than with a used medium tyre and we don’t know why, and it’s not always tyre prep.
“Our car has a weakness with, first of all tyre preparation, but also the balance that a new tyre offers to the car, and sometimes we are not as quick on the first time lap of the tyre as we should be. So it’s two different topics. In the end it brings you to the same point that is extracting maximum lap time of the first time lap of the soft tyre which is what you’re forced to do in quali.
“Sometimes it’s one thing, like Monza was more tyre prep. But in places like Austria, I remember the tyre was ready but it didn’t offer us a good balance and good performance in the first time lap.”
