CARLOS SAINZ REVEALS THREE-MONTH EXPERIMENT FUELLED STRONG WILLIAMS QATAR QUALIFYING
Carlos Sainz credits a long-term setup experiment for his P7 qualifying in Qatar. The Williams driver pushed the FW47's limits after learning from a poor Budapest race.
Williams’ Carlos Sainz shared that an experiment that took three months to pay off helped him perform well in the Formula 1 Qatar Grand Prix qualifying.
In his first season racing with Williams, Sainz has shown his skill a few times. But the team based in Grove had some problems with its FW47 after the race in Hungary earlier this year.
After Sainz’s “very solid” qualifying performance, the team said they had been experimenting before the race at the Losail International Circuit.
Sainz gave credit to his team, who tried hard to turn flashes of brilliance into steady speed, which let Sainz and Albon compete with their main rivals.
“Yes, we took another step forward in qualifying, and it seemed to move things in a good way,” Sainz told Sky Sports F1.
“Overall, I'm just happy with how the weekend is going so far. We've been steady, got a point in the sprint, and now we're in a better spot for qualifying, in the top seven going into the race.”
Sainz’s good result was another success with Williams. The qualifying performance was based on Sainz’s ability to push as hard as he could.
After qualifying, Sainz thought he had reached the FW47's limit, with a few laps that showed how confident he was with the new setup they were testing.
“I did three good laps in qualifying. I hit 20.2 in Q2, and I felt like I just couldn’t go any faster than that. It felt like that was the most the car could do,” Sainz told the media, including Motorsport Week.
“In Q3, even with the plastic scare and some damage to the car that had to be fixed, I don’t know if I had damage still. But after that issue, I still managed to hit 20.2 and get P7, so I’ll take it. We’re in a good spot.”
What was the Sainz-Williams Qatar experiment?
The 31-year-old said after qualifying that the idea for his Qatar setup came months earlier. After a tough time in Budapest, Sainz insisted that the team could improve. Sainz told his team that the “off-weekend” should be a chance to learn instead of just trying to get better quickly.
“Yes, I’ve been pushing since Budapest,” Sainz said.
“We had a bad weekend at this kind of track corner, so I said, let’s use this year to learn and try something in Qatar, because we expected to struggle in Qatar. It should be a tough weekend for us.”
Instead of avoiding a track that was known for showing weaknesses, Sainz accepted the challenge. Sainz brought his ideas from simulator testing, and the team added other ideas.
“So let’s put a plan together and test it,” he said.
“I had some ideas in the simulator that I wanted to try. The team had other ideas, so we put them all together, went to the simulator, tested the car, and that gave us what we thought could be a good starting point for the weekend to give it a shot.”
From Friday’s practice session, the progress was obvious. Sainz said that the new experiment not only gave them a good qualifying performance but also helped them learn more about the FW47.
“And it was working well right away this weekend, which has given us a good sense of what’s going on, good learning, and confidence. The team needs to do these kinds of tests and see them work.”
SERGIO PEREZ BREAKS SILENCE ON CADILLAC’S FIRST FOUR RACES OF 2026 F1 SEASON
Discover why Sergio Perez is confident in Cadillac’s 2026 path despite urgent needs for better pace and reliability fixes.
Sergio Perez didn’t waste time sharing his thoughts on Cadillac after the first four races of the 2026 Formula 1 season.
Cadillac shows up in 2026 as F1’s newest team, but honestly, not a lot of people expected fireworks right away. With veterans like Valtteri Bottas and Perez behind the wheel, the team’s start has been a mix, some moments full of promise, others derailed by reliability issues.
Still, Cadillac isn’t just stuck at the back. Lately, they’ve been right there fighting with Aston Martin and even managed to split them in Miami, which turned a few heads.
Perez knows the team is at risk of falling behind in this crazy-fast development race, though. “We still have work to do, but I’m confident we’re on the right path,” he told reporters, including Motorsport Week.
He added, “Sometimes, once tyre degradation sets in, we can hang with the midfield, but they always seem to find another gear. There’s a long way to go this season, but we’re in a rush to find more pace. We know Aston will get stronger, and we don’t want to be left behind.”
Racing Aston Martin has actually brought Perez some enjoyment. He especially likes battling Fernando Alonso, calling those fights fair and satisfying. Still, he pointed out a weak spot: “We’re having fun with them. Racing Fernando is always great because he’s so fair. But we struggled with tyre degradation; we burnt through them too quickly. We picked the hard compound, but honestly, looking back, I should’ve gone with the soft.”
He said there’s plenty to analyse, and really, the key is getting a better grip on their car as they look ahead to Canada. “We don’t have much time, but in the short term, we need to fix the degradation. We have some ideas, but putting them together is our biggest challenge in the next few weeks.”
Cadillac may be the new kid on the block and still finding its feet, but it’s already starting to make an impact. The road out of the lower ranks won’t be easy, but they’re moving in the right direction.
HOW KIMI ANTONELLI’S THREE-RACE WIN STREAK IS REDEFINING THE MERCEDES TEAM HIERARCHY
With a 43-second gap in Miami, Antonelli proves he’s ready to lead the World Championship. Can Russell bounce back in Canada?
David Coulthard, the former Formula 1 driver, recently pointed out that Kimi Antonelli might be on track to overtake George Russell as Mercedes’ team leader.
Antonelli has been on an impressive run, clinching victories in the last three races and pulling ahead by 20 points over his main competitor and teammate, Russell.
At the Miami race, the young Italian once again outperformed his more seasoned teammate, with Russell managing only fourth place, trailing by 43 seconds.
Coulthard acknowledged Antonelli’s rapid rise in 2026, which is just his second season in F1. He highlighted Antonelli’s strengths and suggested that the Italian is, in many ways, now leading the Mercedes team.
“He’s come of age,” Coulthard said during the Up To Speed podcast.
Despite being relatively new, Antonelli has shown resilience, dealing not only with the pressure from a driver like Lando ready to strike but also with technical glitches like inconsistent paddle shifts. Coulthard mentioned how Antonelli kept his cool even when his engineer, Bono, was trying to help troubleshoot the issue in a tense moment.
“I think he’s earned the right to lead the World Championship,” Coulthard added, noting that this situation probably feels uncomfortable for George. Still, the expectations now lean heavily toward Antonelli leading the team, especially based on recent results.
Coulthard also pointed out that Russell has the experience and skill to reclaim his position as the team’s lead driver, but emphasised that only one can come out on top; someone must finish first and the other second.
The rivalry between them might start opening doors for other teams. Coulthard noted that improvements from McLaren, Ferrari, and Red Bull were already noticeable, especially in Miami.
“Winning in the best car isn’t always straightforward. Many have tried and struggled,” he said.
For Russell, who is feeling the weight of this momentum shift, the upcoming race in Canada will be crucial if he wants to close the gap and halt Antonelli’s winning streak.
