James Vowles must U-turn on Williams decision after Alex Albon’s comments at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix

Williams recorded their second double points finish of the 2025 Formula 1 season at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

Carlos Sainz finished eighth after qualifying P6, while Alex Albon came home behind in ninth to record six points for the Grove-based outfit. After five races, Williams have already beaten their 2024 points tally by eight points.

Team principal James Vowles has ‘mixed emotions’ about this feat as it highlights how poor the team were last year. However, it is also an indication of how much they have improved over the winter and how exciting their project is.

Sainz looks to be getting accustomed to the FW47, having struggled in the opening races in comparison to his teammate. Before the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, he had scored just one point.

Albon told Sainz to adapt his driving style to the car as Williams ‘can’t do anything’ to help in certain corners. The Thai driver has used his experience with the team to score points in every race besides Bahrain so far in 2025.

The Grove outfit’s start to the season has been a surprise even for Albon. They are not focusing their attention on 2025 – something they may well regret.

James Vowles must U-turn Williams’ focus on 2026 after Alex Albon’s ‘best of the midfield’ claim in Jeddah

Williams have ‘kind of given up’ on 2025 as they instead look towards the 2026 regulations. The team have made huge investments behind the scenes to be competitive next season, as evidenced by their strong driver pairing.

Albon says Williams are looking to copy Red Bull and how they transition into new regulations. His former team aced the changes in 2022 and have since dominated the sport with Max Verstappen.

However, Vowles must think about a U-turn on his focus on 2026 after Albon’s comments in Jeddah. Speaking to journalist Mark Mann-Bryans in Jeddah, the 29-year-old claimed Williams are ‘the best of the midfield.’

This could quickly change if Williams’ rivals put more into 2025 – they have to ‘strike while they are inside’ and develop this year’s car more to extract performance.

“Alex Albon came through the pen, I was speaking to him and he actually said: ‘Look, we’ve had a great start to the year, probably better than we thought,” said Mann-Bryans via Autosport.

“We’re probably the best of the midfield at the moment, we’re putting all of our eggs in the 2026 basket now.’ So all we need is for some of the other midfield pack to put more into ’25 and there could be a flip.

“And there could be that they start falling down the pecking order, so as he said, they need to maximise their races now, strike while they are inside.”

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Williams could fall behind if they do not shift their focus to 2025

Williams are currently fifth in the constructors’ championship, which would mark their best finish since 2017. That in itself is an indication to focus more on their 2025 car.

Haas are just five points behind, with Esteban Ocon and Oliver Bearman proving the VF-25 has strong signs of performance. Racing Bulls also have pace to rival Williams, but have yet to take real advantage on Sunday.

The Grove outfit’s start to 2025, while abandoning their efforts, has been impressive. Their potential, if they do choose to shift their focus to this season, is high, with Q3 appearances being regular.

Williams could risk falling behind the likes of Haas, VCARB and Alpine if they make progress on their 2025 machines. Focusing on 2026 is, of course, a smart move, but putting all their effort into next year may be a mistake from Vowles, given their strong performance this season.