Carlos Sainz drove Williams’ 2025 F1 car – the FW47 – for the first time on Friday. Williams had long planned to hold a shakedown at Silverstone in advance of the F175 launch event.
New signing Sainz was the first to go out on track, with Alex Albon also getting behind the wheel. The car ran in a bespoke livery, with the teams obliged to withhold their real designs until the O2 Arena event.
Under the rules, teams are allowed to complete up to 200km in a shakedown/filming day. Williams used a shorter layout that cuts out the end of the first sector and the entirety of the second.
Sainz and Albon will continue their preparations at the official pre-season test in Bahrain, which begins on 26 February. James Vowles will split the three days of running between his drivers.
While he can’t compare to his teammate, who’s raced for the team since 2022, Sainz has now racked up extensive mileage in Williams machinery. He drove the FW46 on the Monday and Tuesday after the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, his final appearance for Ferrari.
And Williams also stopped in Barcelona at the start of a month for a TPC outing in their 2023 challenger. McLaren, Ferrari and Alpine have all tested at the Spanish Grand Prix venue this winter.
Carlos Sainz reports difficulties in high-speed corners after Williams test
Williams released a behind-the-scenes video on their official YouTube value documenting the Barcelona test. It was Sainz’s first track action of 2025.
They haven’t publicised lap times, understandably as that would lead to a comparison between their two drivers, but they did share some of Sainz’s feedback. The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is a high downforce venue, made up largely of medium and high-speed corners.
And Sainz told his engineers that he was struggling in the fastest sections. He seemed to put this down to the power delivery of his Mercedes engine.
This is a new experience for the 30-year-old, who has only raced with Renault and Ferrari motors so far in his career. His colleague told him he could prepare revised settings for the next day of running.
“I think one of the reasons why in high speed I struggle a bit is because I lift a lot, but there’s a lot of power in that area,” he explained. “You have to do a very shallow lift not to lose too much power.
“You have so much power in this area. If you have less power in this area, you don’t lose so much drive in the car.”
James Vowles’ verdict on whether Carlos Sainz can score podiums at Williams in 2025
Williams’ 2025 car will be considerably faster than the FW45, such is the speed of progress in F1. But it’s significant that Sainz had issues adapting to the Mercedes power unit.
That is one area that will be consistent between the two cars. Naturally, the engine will have improved, but its characteristics may remain the same.
Vowles has refused to rule out podiums in 2025, even if he accepts that they’re unlikely. That will encourage Sainz, who stood on the rostrum nine times last year.
Williams want to become a top F1 team again, and part of that is making commercial gains. Vowles has learned from his time at Mercedes, orchestrating a key title sponsorship deal with Atlassian that was announced this week.
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