Alex Albon documents that Williams’ aim next year is to replicate the levels of growth Aston Martin and McLaren have made during the 2023 Formula 1 season.
After bringing up the rear of the field for the fourth time in five years last term, Williams is on course to record its best placing in the Constructors’ Championship since 2017.
The Grove outfit currently sits seventh in the standings on 23 points – all scored by Albon, who has continued to rebuild his reputation following his short-lived Red Bull spell.
Albon asserts that Williams’ progress, which has seen it accumulate more points this season than it did through 2022, stems from pursuing the right choices over the winter.
“The upgrade package that we had on the car for Canada was already, by February, being designed and in some parts being made,” Albon told RacingNews365.
“We didn’t have many upgrades coming this year. In fact, Canada was really our last major one. So when you do it like that, it frees up more time to focus on next year’s car.”
Despite Williams making headway, Albon insists that the team’s ceiling has been capped by limitations that have existed in its machinery through several regulation cycles.
Albon reveals that he has been aiding with the development of the 2024 car since April to try and finally rectify those balance issues.
“I’ve [been] working on next year’s car since April,” he explained.
“This largely consists of simulator work, to try to mitigate some of these constant balance issues we’ve been having for the last four or five years.
“That’s been a big focus for next year.”
However, Albon points to McLaren’s situation as evidence that a car can become more competitive without necessarily solving some fundamental problems.
Despite the Woking team developing into podium contenders, Lando Norris has urged McLaren to make its F1 cars “easier to drive”.
“If you listen to Lando and Oscar’s [Piastri] comments, they’re not saying that the car itself has improved in terms of the balance,” Albon continued.
“They just say there’s a bit more downforce to the car and they’ve made a huge step, but not in the way the car drives.”
Williams Team Principal James Vowles, who stepped into the role on the eve of this season, outlined that the British camp’s route back to the top remains a five-year project.
Albon is convinced that Williams’ decision to abandon developing its current car throughout this year will enable it to get a headstart on its competitors for next season.
The Anglo-Thai driver has pinpointed the success Aston Martin and McLaren have enjoyed at varying stages of this year as the formula Williams should aim to emulate.
“It shows the ambition of the team. It shows where we think we need to improve, and that just doing upgrades through the year is not really going to get us to that point,” Albon clarified.
“Aston Martin is a great example of designating time and focusing on giving yourself a bit more of a buffer to improve the car. You need to think more long-term.
“We don’t want to be finishing eighth in the Constructors’, we want to be finishing fifth or fourth and that takes a big leap forward,” explains Albon.
“I don’t think McLaren did much to their car from pre-Silverstone, then they’ve just come in and hit the ground running.
“It seems like the top teams are still doing micro-updates, but the midfield teams are just putting in these big ones.
“A lot of that is due to the cost cap, but also for the midfield teams it’s more efficient to do it that way.”
