"It's horribly painful" - Williams drops 2026 car upgrades to benefit 2027
Williams F1 team boss James Vowles says it was "horribly painful" for the squad to forego 2026 aero upgrades and save the resources for 2027 instead. Williams has been forced into playing the long game for some time now, but was hoping its progress behind the scenes in 2025 would carry over into the new regulations. Instead, Williams faced a huge wake-up call as the huge workload required to ...…
Williams has decided to postpone 2026 car upgrades to focus on improving the 2027 model. This strategic move, described by team boss James Vowles as "horribly painful," comes after an unsuccessful attempt to adapt to the new regulations in time for the 2026 season. The team faced numerous challenges during the development process, resulting in a car that was late, overweight, and aerodynamically underperforming.
In an effort to streamline resources for the 2027 project, Williams has opted to forgo new aerodynamic parts and instead invest heavily in the upcoming car's development. This decision has led to the team treating practice sessions as preparation for the future rather than optimizing performance on the current car, while also managing spare parts to ensure longevity.
Despite these sacrifices, Williams has only accumulated 12 points so far, indicating that success in 2026 may rely heavily on luck.
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