Motorsport Week begins its team-by-team mid-season reviews, starting with Williams, which has tumbled to the rear of the Formula 1 pack with its recalcitrant and unloved FW41.
Williams hoped to build on last year’s fifth place under the tutelage of Paddy Lowe as it overhauled its design philosophy – though such a lofty target was met with raised eyebrows pre-season, and the hesitancy of observers proved to be justified when the FW41’s weaknesses were put in full view. The FW40’s straight-line speed prowess had been lost but the expected downforce gains had not taken place, relegating the team to the rear of the pack. That lack of downforce has been accentuated by chronic instability, meaning that the team’s two young and inexperienced drivers are grappling with an unpredictable car. There have been minor gains – a new front wing introduced for Hockenheim helped – while at circuits with more consistent corner types, such as Baku, the car has been a midfielder. This has comfortably been Williams’ most disastrous season and the next events should surely be treated as a test session to avoid a repeat in 2019, for Sauber is too far in front. It is losing Martini, potentially losing Stroll’s money, and faces a sizeable dip in prize money. It is a sad state of affairs.
Stroll was wildly inconsistent during a perplexing rookie campaign in which he sometimes thrived – Azerbaijan, Italy, Mexico – but frequently disappeared without a trace. Quantifying his progress in 2018 is therefore a challenge due to Williams’ plummeting fortunes and the exit of a benchmark in Felipe Massa. For his part, Stroll insists he is a much better driver year-on year (an obvious conclusion) and he has put up a fight where possible, grasping the opportunity when it fell on his lap in Azerbaijan – a year on from his podium – and occasionally proving his prowess at the start, before the regression kicks in. Stroll’s at-times surly off-track demeanour is a shame after proving to be a likeable character through 2017 but given the frustrations is partly understandable. No driver wants to spend a year existing on the potential promise of occasional points – but that is his lot, at the moment.
Sirotkin is the only driver on the grid yet to score a point and has not even spent a single racing lap within the top 10 – but both statistics act as a disservice to an erudite driver who received unfair criticism in the early months due to his status as ‘not Robert Kubica’. Sirotkin assimilated well within Williams, spending several weeks in the factory, and his engineering background has assisted his progress. A thoughtful and articulate individual, Sirotkin has impressed many with his off-track conduct, incisively discussing Williams’ weaknesses without wishing to criticise the current situation. Sirotkin was impressive in Azerbaijan, until getting caught up in a first-lap clash, and displayed relatively strong pace in Monaco, his prospects there scuppered by the team’s tyre mix-up on the grid. The Russian has proven his worth to be on the grid of 20 – though further dissection of his potential and racecraft is impossible due to Williams’ frequent lone status at the rear.
Tomorrow we'll bring you our Sauber mid-season review and over the next two weeks we'll gradually work our way through the entire field.
Reviews:
Mid-season review: Williams falls to last
Mid-season review: Revitalised Sauber back in the groove
Mid-season review: Patchy STR making gains
