The 2025 Formula 1 season poses an interesting conundrum for every team on the grid.
Unlike the last few campaigns, each team now has to make a decision on what to concentrate their resources on with F1 introducing new regulations in 2026.
The development cycle appears to have reached its conclusion with all 10 teams closer together than they ever have been in the sport’s history in 2024.
Unless one of last year’s front-running outfits has discovered a new loophole, this year is set to be the most competitive on record and plenty of drivers will fancy their chances of toppling Max Verstappen as he aims for a fifth consecutive Drivers’ Championship.
Any team that fancies its chances of winning races this year will be wary about switching their focus to 2026 too early in case any of their rivals develop a new part that they suddenly need to react to.
Red Bull are said to be furious about the latest FIA directive which means that some teams may need to alter their cars halfway through this year.
For other teams, 2025 might not be worth concentrating on and instead, the upcoming ruleset and the change in status quo it potentially offers might be a more attractive prospect.
The Race F1 journalist Edd Straw believes Williams are likely already in this position and in one of their recent podcasts, via the site’s Patreon, explained how the team are looking towards 2026 while also hoping to have made some strides forward over the winter going into the upcoming campaign.
Williams have ‘kind of given up’ on the 2025 Formula 1 season
Straw was asked where he sees Williams starting and progressing throughout 2025 and said: “Well, I certainly see regular points finishes.
“I think last season was pretty bad for Williams but I think there were clear reasons for that.
“In terms of the fact they really tried to push the way they do things, the way they manufacture stuff, they took loads of weight out the monocoque ahead of the season, just got the car read, but then they were massively overweight for the other stuff. So, they’re being very ambitious.
READ MORE: All to know about Williams Racing from team principal to Mercedes ties
“They’ve kind of given up on 2025 in so far as 2026 is the priority.
“But, I think there’s quite a bit of low-hanging fruit for them to grasp at and certainly do a lot better than they did last season when they were ninth.
“I think they’ll be much, much more handy midfield competitors this season.”
Williams make up for lack of technical updates with Carlos Sainz signing
The £981m-valued F1 team may be looking forward to 2026, but the signing of Carlos Sainz alongside Alex Albon should give them an immediate boost going into this year.
Sainz had offers from several teams on the grid but opted to move to Williams despite team principal James Vowles admitting 2025 might be sacrificed for the team’s long-term success.
He’s now set to be the strongest driver in F1’s midfield but will hope that’s not the case for long.
READ MORE: James Vowles admits he’s holding back Carlos Sainz at Williams for one important reason
Williams will continue to use Mercedes power units from 2026 and whispers in the paddock suggest Mercedes will have the best engines for the upcoming rule change.
That could potentially catapult Williams forward, especially as McLaren proved last year that being a customer outfit isn’t a barrier to success.
It’s one of the reasons why Alpine have abandoned their factory status and switched from their own Renault engines to Mercedes power units for next year.
That will give Sainz, Albon and Vowles hope, but it will take more than just a quick engine to be successful next year, which is why Williams are switching focus to next year’s car already.
