Belgian GP: Mixed qualifying for Atlassian Williams F1 Team


By Williams F1 Team
July 19 2026

Qualifying for the 2026 Belgian GP would see the Atlassian Williams F1 Team come away with Carlos Sainz finishing 14th and Alex Albon 16th. For Carlos his result was a step forward over his practice sessions where he had struggled with issues but the team was able to turn things around for qualifying. But for Alex Albon it was very much the opposite as he has being able to perform well in practice but suddenly, after changes to his car between FP3 and qualifying, would find his qualifying go badly not making it into Q2 like Carlos. So again the team sees both their drivers starting Sunday's race from outside the top ten making the chances of achieving a points result that much more difficult. 

 
 Atlassian Williams F1 Team Belgian GP Qualifying Review
 
Albon
 
Albon

Alex Albon:
"It's frustrating not to make it into Q2 today after feeling like the car was in a good place all weekend. We made some setup changes between FP3 and qualifying, but they were just too aggressive, so it's unfortunate to fall short when it matters. We've been in good rhythm with the car all weekend and have been slowly chipping away at improvements, which had been paying off. We'll just have to see what we can do tomorrow, keeping in mind there are a few grid penalties, so we'll have a few cars out of place."
 
Sainz

Carlos Sainz:
"It's been a tough weekend so far. We were dealing with an issue in all of the practice sessions, so it was a relief to find a fix for qualifying and get the car working as it should. Getting into Q2 was a positive, putting in some good laps and extracting everything from the car. Tomorrow will be about executing a clean race and avoiding any drama around us. We'll need some chaos to get within reach of points, so we'll look to maximise any opportunities that come our way."
 
Sainz
 
Albon
 
Track: Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium Lap Length: 7.004km
 
Pos Driver Team Q1 Q2 Q3
 
14 C Sainz Williams Racing 1:47.080 1:46.777 -
16 A Albon Williams Racing 1:47.120 - -
 
Sainz