Williams have secured fifth place in the Teams’ Championship with one round to go, thanks to Carlos Sainz’s podium finish in Qatar. The Spaniard came home third for his second rostrum of the season – third if you include Sprint results – to make sure that Williams finish on top of the midfield.
Williams finished ninth last season, with 17 points to show for their campaign. That turnaround to finish fifth this year, with 137 points and counting, means the team sit 45 points ahead of their nearest rivals with one round remaining.
“It is mathematically finished now. This surpasses our expectations really and I hope it shows the world the direction we are on and the belief we have in where we are going as a result of things,” team boss James Vowles said in the wake of the Qatar Grand Prix.
“We are still here to win championships. We are a long way away from that, a long way away. But at least now the work we are doing is starting to pay off.”
Sainz made a great start in Qatar, before managing to pick up a further place in the first round of pit stops.
His podium charge was aided by McLaren’s strategy calls – with the team opting not to pit either car under the Safety Car – but nonetheless, the Spaniard had put in quick lap after quick lap to maintain enough of an advantage that Lando Norris could not reel him in late on.
Sainz duly claimed P3 for the second time in a Grand Prix this year, despite a late scare when his can began to understeer.
“We lost about eight degrees of tyre temperature on the front right, and a little bit of downforce all in one go which suggests a small component failed,” Vowles explained. “But basically, the right-hand corners he was suffering in, he did brilliantly with it. He calmly brought the car to the end of the race, so good job.
“Exceptional. Really fantastic performance from Carlos and the team when it counted and every detail adds up. Getting on the podium by milliseconds really is such a just reward for the incredible work the whole team is putting in this year.
“I was proud of Carlos and the team when we got our first podium in Baku; the second is a dream come true, but perhaps more importantly at a track that was almost our worst last year. And we’ve come back, we’ve reinvented ourselves and the result is there for everyone to see.”
Before the weekend began, both Williams drivers were quick to temper expectations here, saying the track characteristics did not suit their car. As such, getting both cars into the top 10 in Sprint Qualifying, and Sainz backing that up with a Q3 in Qualifying, showed just how far the team have come.
The Spaniard scored in the Sprint and the Grand Prix, with back-to-back top five finishes after coming home P5 in Las Vegas. Alex Albon did not manage to score in Qatar, but his consistency at the start of the season was a big factor in Williams finishing where they have done.
“For Alex, we will come back fighting in Abu Dhabi. We haven’t got it all together this weekend, but I’ll reiterate that his performance across the season is why we’ve secured fifth in the Constructors’ Championship today. And more so than that, his pace is still there. We just need to bring it all together,” Vowles concluded.
