Belgian GP: Encouraging points result for Williams Racing

Carlos Sainz:
"Following a costly set-up change yesterday before Qualifying, our starting position meant we had little to lose, so we took a gamble to start from the pit lane, changing the car to a wet configuration. Unfortunately, with the Red Flag during the worst of the weather, the race was dry, and it clearly didn’t work in our favour. We also had an issue with my pit stop, so it was a bit of a disappointing race all together. However, on the positive side, the Sprint was very strong and today the new package worked well on Alex’s car, so I look forward to next week."

Alex Albon:
"I’m really happy; we’re top of the midfield so that’s always nice and I managed to hold off Lewis, which is never easy. I struggled a little bit in the rain, which is to be expected, so I lost that position to George early on but after that, we settled in and were able to maintain position and finish strong. It was important to not make mistakes with Lewis behind, but I think his downforce worked in our favour. As a team we did a great job as it’s not easy beating those top teams, so it’s good to see our package is working well."

James Vowles Team Principal:
"A strong weekend for us, with Alex finishing P6 in today’s Race and Carlos finishing P6 in the Sprint Race yesterday. It was difficult conditions all round. With Alex, he drove a focused race. Didn't put a foot wrong. We did a good pitstop and a good strategy helping him to hold on to that P6, despite having to defend against Lewis for most of the race.

In the case of Carlos, we took a gamble this morning that the race would be wet for longer. We, like a number of other teams, fitted a slightly larger rear wing at the end. We only did around about ten laps in those wet conditions, and that car set-up is quite a bit slower in drier conditions. So that did not pay off today. But from where we were starting, it was a sensible choice to try and provide some learning, understanding and opportunity to Carlos later in the race.

We did not execute Carlos’ pitstop well. We’ll review this and make sure that we progress across the season, operating at the highest level possible. Going forward though, what I'm encouraged by is that this package is working. It was a strong weekend, yet it's still a tight midfield, but I’m looking forward to these next races where we'll also deliver."