– Alexander Albon had to convert the Japanese Grand Prix into a test drive. The Williams driver had experienced a weekend to forget in Suzuka, which is why team principal James Vowles decided on exactly this step.
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“What did we do with Alex in the last few laps of the race when he was constantly coming into the pits?” was Vowles’ introduction in his YouTube format The Vowles Verdict. Here, the team boss regularly answers fan questions.
“We knew we wouldn’t finish in the points, but at the same time, we wanted to maximize our learning experience in all these races as long as that is the case.”
What does Williams do during test drives?
“To establish a correlation between the track, wind tunnel, and CFD, you can do several things. For example, you can put flow-viz on the car, the sprayed paint. Sometimes you can test rakes, especially in free practice. Of course, you don’t do that in a race.”
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“We actually adjusted the front wing angle up and down and ensured that what we expected as downforce settings at the front and rear of the car correlated at all three or four angles.”
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“It helps us ensure that we don’t have gains or losses that we wouldn’t otherwise expect, and that the setup we are using is correct somewhere and we can continue in the wind tunnel.”
Horror start to the season for Williams
Williams’ start to the season has been anything but successful. While the team was at the top of the midfield last season, they currently sit in ninth place in the Constructors’ World Championship with a meager two points.
The Grove-based team had already failed to appear for the first test drives in Barcelona. Furthermore, the FW48 is struggling with excess weight and is by far the worst among the teams supplied by Mercedes so far.
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It remains questionable if and when Williams can close the gap. We will likely know more at the earliest in early May at the Miami Grand Prix.
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