F1 News: Sainz Jr. struggle can make Williams faster

(GMM) Alex Albon has defended his Williams F1 teammate Carlos Sainz Jr. for struggling to keep up so far in 2025.

Some have been surprised that, after switching from Ferrari over the winter, Sainz has been the consistently slower Williams driver.

“If you expect to see the best of Carlos Sainz Jr. in a Williams in the third race and in a new car, then yeah, you don’t understand the sport very well,” the Spaniard declared in Bahrain.

When asked to explain what he’s struggling with, he admitted he is still driving his new car as though it’s a Ferrari.

“You fall into a trap after years of muscle memory of doing everything that way,” said Sainz. “But given how new everything is, for me to be in the same tenth in quali as a guy like Alex, I’m not in a bad place.”

Far from gloat, Albon – now in his fourth year at the Grove based team – thinks Williams can actually benefit from Sainz’s Ferrari “habits”.

“It’s interesting to talk to Carlos about these things because these are the habits he’s learned, which aren’t necessarily bad Ferrari habits,” he said. “They’re good habits, and it’s about trying to see if we can use them in our car.

“Right now, there are some corners I’m talking about that we can’t do, and he might have to change the driving style he’s used to,” Albon added. “But ultimately, they’re going to make the car faster.

“I think as a team, we’re being very good at taking everything into account and understanding what he’s saying. It might be a difficult fix for this year, but for next year, we can prioritize certain areas to have a better car.”