James Vowles outlines how Williams are already preparing for 2025 after ‘frustrating’ 2024 season

Williams have endured an extremely difficult 2024 campaign, and the last two races have only added to their misery.

Alex Albon only managed four points heading into the Italian Grand Prix where he found himself with a new teammate. Logan Sargeant was sacked after scoring just one point from 36 races and was replaced by F2 driver Franco Colapinto.

The Argentine’s arrival gave the team a brief boost as Albon scored points at Monza before he and Colapinto gave Williams their first double-points finish in Baku.

Colapinto scored points again in Austin as it looked like the team’s upgrade had put them in a position to compete. But it seems reality has set back in at Grove.

The Sao Paulo Grand Prix was a disaster for Williams, as both drivers crashed heavily in qualifying. Albon’s car was not fixed in time for the race, but the team worked tirelessly to get Colapinto out on track – only for him to destroy his car again on Sunday.

The crashes set the team back significantly in costs and team principal James Vowles urged Colapinto to ‘take more care’ at the Las Vegas Grand Prix. But in qualifying, the Argentine suffered a 50G crash and left him starting the race in the pit lane.

James Vowles reveals Williams are already running tests for the 2025 season

The 21-year-old could only manage 14th in the race while Albon was forced to retire with a cooling issue. Before his retirement, Albon broke an F1 record by setting the fastest-recorded speed of the season so far.

Williams have the potential to fight further up the field with their pace, but accidents have hampered their progression. Wiliams even had to borrow Aston Martin parts to repair Colapinto’s car after his crash in Las Vegas.

But promising signs are there for 2025 despite it not showing on the scoreboard. Speaking on Williams’ official YouTube channel, Vowles outlined how the team are preparing for next season already after what has been a ‘frustrating’ season.

“Short answer, we have to be realistic. Where we are in the Constructors’ Championship is probably ninth.

“But it does present an opportunity both with the Sprint race weekend in Qatar and Abu Dhabi and then the test following Abu Dhabi to learn for 2025 and beyond, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do with that time frame.

“There’s plenty of things actually we’re testing already in Vegas and we’ll continue that on through these next two races.

“It’s frustrating to be in this position, but also we have to be realistic about what’s about now, and what’s about the future and investing in the future will pay more reward.”

Can Williams improve in 2025 with Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz?

Williams currently sit ninth in the Constructors’ Championship with just 17 points – 11 less than they scored last year when they finished seventh.

But as the team make a head start on their testing for 2025, Williams will be in good stead for next season to perform, especially with their exciting driver pairing.

Albon will remain with the team in 2025 which will be a huge sigh of relief. The Thai driver has carried the team on his back for the past three years and has shown exceptional pace in qualifying and great skill to get his car into the points.

READ MORE: All to know about Williams Racing from team principal to Mercedes ties

Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz will join him next season in what is a major coup for Williams. Ted Kravitz thinks Williams will love Sainz’s messages in Las Vegas as he led Ferrari’s strategy in the race that ultimately saw him finish third.

The Grove-based outfit have all they need in terms of drivers to be competitive. Whether their early testing for 2025 will give Albon and Sainz the car to do that is another question.