Sainz’s ideas already bring “real momentum” to Williams – Vowles

Carlos Sainz’s impact is already being felt within the Williams Formula 1 squad, team principal James Vowles has stated.

Sainz has moved to Williams alongside Alex Albon this year after racing for Toro Rosso, Renault, McLaren and Ferrari during his first 10 seasons in F1, having been replaced by Lewis Hamilton at the Maranello-based outfit for the 2025 season.

The veteran actually made his Williams debut at the end-of-season test in Abu Dhabi, and revealed he was already thinking about how to improve his future car when racing his very last laps with Ferrari. 

“He’s relishing it,” Vowles told Autosport at the Autosport Awards earlier this week.

“You could see from the moment he jumped in the car in Abu Dhabi, his mind switched. This is where he wants to be, this is what he wants to do, he’s part of our success story. He’s fitting in perfectly.

“He’s a brilliant personality who, with him, brings not only race-winning pedigree but this want and desire for Williams to be successful.

“I was there with him this morning, with Alex and myself, for three, four hours – just talking through plans for the year, what we’ve changed, where we’re going.”

Sainz has been at work with the team at the Grove factory since last month, and Vowles has already been impressed with his new driver’s input.

“His contributions – as are Alex’s as well – are absolutely key for driving this team forward, because it’s now into a level of detail where you’re starting to chase milliseconds as opposed to the big-ticket items we work for,” Vowles added.

“Already in the space of just a few weeks, real positive momentum from ideas, concepts, how we can change, how we can move forward, is coming.”

Sainz is only the fourth driver ever to race Ferrari, McLaren and Williams cars in his career.

While he wasn’t always dominant in terms of pure pace compared to Lando Norris at McLaren and Charles Leclerc at Ferrari, the Spaniard played a key role in making those teams better, Vowles claimed – with the Scuderia contending for the title last year, which was a first since 2018.

“He also doesn’t leave a stone unturned,” the Briton said. “I mean, there’s a statistic up on the F1 channel today where you look at all the teams he’s been to and where they’ve ended up. It’s not a coincidence. He’s a hard worker, a diligent worker that brings with him success – and he wants us to be successful.”