Albon and Sainz praise teamwork as Saudi Arabia double points finish puts Williams fifth in standings.
Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon both scored for Williams in Saudi Arabia to lift their team back above Haas into fifth in the standings. Sainz recorded his strongest finish of the season with eighth as he came home ‘best of the rest’ while Albon was hot on his heels in ninth.
21 Apr 2025
Formula One - Official Site

“I think today, honestly, we managed to nail a very good race and on top of that managed to help Alex to make sure he was getting in the points,” said Sainz. “So, very happy we managed to execute a very good race, even though the pit stop for the first time in the year [was] a bit compromised, a bit slow. We managed to push on, push forward and I did a very quick last lap showing the pace I had today was very good.”

It seems Sainz has turned a corner since his early struggles to get on top of the FW47, in Bahrain showing good pace until a collision ended his race while here he was able to hold his own in the top 10. “It was definitely a challenging start to the season, but it was always going to be with the adaption process,” he added. “I always warned it was not going to be easy, and I took it step by step, to be in race five at the level that I am… if I keep the philosophy I’m taking, I think we are going in the right direction.”

‘Teamwork’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/a...mYt01zJoWPAlwx


Carlos Sainz's proved his worth to Williams in the Saudi Arabian GP
Four-time race winner Carlos Sainz was one of the most enticing free-agents ahead of the 2025 season, and his race to eighth in Jeddah showed exactly why Williams fought for him
Apr 22, 2025
Jake Boxall-Legge
Motorsport.com

"The team asked me to give the DRS to Alex to make sure Hadjar didn't have a chance of passing us," Sainz recalled. "It's a tricky one because you always feel like it exposes you, especially in a high speed track where the DRS has a very big effect. You always get a bit nervous about it because you know from there on, you cannot put a foot wrong if you do a mistake or hit a wall or whatever.”

"But in the end it worked, and I could show my pace in in the last lap; I had a lot of pace, which is really good sign. It's not the same when it comes from your idea, because you know you're 100% sure – when it comes from the team, you always struggle a bit more to commit to it because it doesn't come natural for you. But I think we did the right call in the end.”

‘DRS to Alex’;

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/c...-him/10715907/


Williams F1 2025 Resurgence: A comeback in the making
Apr 22, 2025
Scott Gulbransen
Sportsnaut

Williams’ transformation extends beyond its drivers and leadership to its bold development strategy. In a move that underscores their forward-thinking approach, Vowles revealed that Williams was among the first teams to halt wind tunnel development on the current FW47, redirecting efforts to the 2026 car, the FW48, designed for the sport’s upcoming regulatory overhaul. This decision carries risks—rival teams may continue to refine their 2025 cars, potentially gaining an edge in the short term.

Yet, it reflects Williams’ commitment to building a championship-contending future, much like an NFL team investing in young talent while still competing for the playoffs. Sainz emphasizes the importance of the ongoing development of the FW47, as understanding its full potential will inform the design of the 2026 car, ensuring no opportunity for learning is missed.

‘Resurgence’;

https://sportsnaut.com/f1/formula-1-...ack-in-making/


Ocon admits Haas ‘struggled’ in Jeddah after P14 finish
20 Apr 2025
Formula One - Official Site (Video)

Esteban Ocon is already looking ahead to the next race in Miami after a difficult run to 14th place in the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

‘Struggled’’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/video/oc...49609893267247


‘I wasn’t able to do much today out there’ admits Bearman after P13 finish in Saudi
20 April 2025
Formula One - Official Site (Video)

Ollie Bearman says Haas have work to do to find more pace after he finished 13th in the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

‘Work to do’;

https://www.formula1.com/en/video/i-...50021328366449


‘If I would have been there’: Guenter Steiner claims he could have tempted a ‘very good’ driver to race for Haas in 2025 instead of Esteban Ocon
24 Apr 2025
Kyle Archer
F1 Oversteer

Haas secured an all-new driver line-up for the 2025 F1 season, but Guenther Steiner would not have signed Esteban Ocon to join Oliver Bearman if he were still in charge. Guenther Steiner would have kept Nico Hulkenberg at Haas over signing Esteban Ocon. Steiner feels he might have been able to tempt Hulkenberg to stay at Haas instead of the 37-year-old moving to Sauber as a factory Audi driver if the Italian-American was still at their helm.

Hulkenberg signed a three-year, £16.5m Audi contract before Haas hired a successor. “I think I would have signed Ollie Bearman,” Steiner told the BBC’s Chequered Flag podcast. “And what I always say is I would have tried to keep Nico because I think Nico is a very good driver. And I think, maybe, if I would have been there, maybe he would have stayed.”

‘If I would have been there’;

https://www.f1oversteer.com/news/gue...-esteban-ocon/


Unheard Fernando Alonso radio message from Saudi GP emerges and it's completely damning
23 Apr 2025
tom jenkins
Yahoo! Sport

During last week's race, Alonso was in constant dialogue with his race engineer, and the Spaniard was clearly baffled by the machine he had under him. "I can't do it. If I lose the DRS [of the car in front of him] I'm dead," he said. "I don't know how I could have lost the DRS having had DRS on the previous lap. I can't maintain this pace. It's crazy. The level of risk... is incredible. Pushing at this level is not sustainable," he added.

"We need three or four cars to finish out of the race to score a point," he claimed. “I gave everything on track and it was hard to keep up the pace with the cars in front – we were just not quick enough," he said via F1.com “P11 is the worst position probably, but we need to get used to it. It’s going to be difficult to score points this year.”

‘Damning’;

https://uk.sports.yahoo.com/news/unh...163801962.html


Aston Martin reels from poor start, holds crisis meeting
23/04/2025
Phillip van Osten
F1i.com

The team has slipped further from the sharp end of the grid, prompting what team principal Andy Cowell described as a crisis meeting following another underwhelming race weekend in Saudi Arabia. “We’re getting together to have a think about what we’ve learned over this triple-header, and [ask] what do we do going forward?” Cowell revealed post-race. “Can we get more out of the car? Yes, I think we can.”

“100% of Adrian’s designing time is focused on ’26,” Cowell confirmed ahead of the Saudi Arabian GP. Alonso, ever the pragmatist, supports that approach despite the current struggles. “I think ultimately it’s his decision,” he said when asked if Newey should get involved with the AMR25. “He has enough experience, knowledge and background to know what is best. And I think he’s working only on 2026, so if he’s deciding that, I totally support that.”

‘Crisis meeting’;

https://f1i.com/news/536844-aston-ma...s-meeting.html


Adrian Newey ‘doesn’t go to meetings’ or ‘answer emails’ in Aston Martin progress update
25 Apr 2025
Jamie Woodhouse
PlanetF1.com

Aston Martin team principal Andy Cowell lifted the lid on what Adrian Newey has been up to since arriving at the team in March. “From day one we made sure we prepared his working environment, he came in and went to meetings about the new rules, about the concepts we had worked on. We explained the countdown to the first test and the first race. And we pointed out all the deadlines for submitting information for the production of this [2026] car.”

“He went straight to work with engineers to do sketches on his drawing board. He’s in that design cycle to design fundamental parts of the car. Ninety per cent of the creation of a car is in the factory and that’s where we want Adrian. He has his office, everyone who walks past says that whenever they see him he’s always drawing on the whiteboard. Sure, he doesn’t go to meetings, he doesn’t answer emails, he’s just putting together a fast car – and we all support that process.”

“One-hundred per cent of Adrian’s designing time is focused on ’26,” said Cowell. “He joined in March, so there was a period of him getting up to speed with the regulations, up to speed with the concept work that we’ve been doing in the preceding couple of months. And there are some tough deadlines to meet for releasing monopod details, transmission details, and the cars are running earlier for the ’26 season.”

‘He’s always drawing on the whiteboard’;

‘Progress update’;

https://www.planetf1.com/news/adrian...plies-approach