Albon: Improvements made at Williams, but 'no room to relax'
Alex Albon has urged Williams to maintain his intensity heading into the 2025 F1 season, insisting the British outfit “can't be relaxed” despite solving many of the issues that plagued his 2024 campaign.
Williams faced significant challenges last year, starting the season with an overweight FW46 car that cost the team up to 0.45 seconds per lap until in-season upgrades lightened its contender.
At the core of the Grove-based outfit's complications was an outdated design and car assembly process that relied on a cumbersome system and a heavily outdated software
Williams has since modernized its design and build processes, ensuring that its 2025 car will hit the 798kg weight limit at the start of the season.
While these improvements should naturally boost Williams' performance following a disappointing ninth-place finish in the 2024 constructors' championship, Albon remains cautious about making assumptions.
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“I don't think it's a year where we can kind of be relaxed. [That] we think that it's all gonna come to us now,” Albon told Motorsport.com.
“There's still an element of, 'keep pushing' and keep making sure that we're learning and being adaptable.”
Albon emphasized the importance of maintaining a proactive approach, acknowledging that setbacks are inevitable.
“We are going to arrive to setbacks next year, as every team is, and hopefully now we're in a better place to deal with it,” he added.
Sainz to Deliver Boost in Experience and Leadership
Albon will team up with former Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz in 2025. It's a partnership he sees as a valuable asset for Williams as it seeks to return to competitiveness in Formula 1.
“It will be great that once Carlos comes in and integrates himself into the team – his experience and his knowledge from Ferrari is going to help a lot,” Albon said.
“I do think he will be a good team leader as well. He's well-spoken and he's very articulate.
“He comes from a strong engineering background too. I think he's good in that sense.
“So, how we take his information and how we can apply it to our car will be really important, too.”
Optimism Tempered with Realism
Reflecting on the changes Williams has undergone, Albon expressed cautious optimism for the upcoming season.
“I think we're going to have a strong line-up and I just think that we've kind of gone through a lot of setbacks this year,” he said.
“we've learned through a lot of them and I'm excited. I feel more hopeful [for] this next year than I was this year.
“Just because I feel like we've made a lot of changes. And now we've done, not all of the learning, but a majority of the learning, and now we can use that into next year.”
Albon's comments outline the determination within Williams to continue its upward trajectory, with both drivers and management focused on translating the team's progress into tangible results on the track.
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