Azerbaijan GPSainz Leaves a Lifelong Mark on Vowles

Williams fell to the last position in the constructors' championship in 2018. Since then, the British team had barely managed a podium under extraordinarily anomalous circumstances. It was at Spa-Francorchamps in 2021, when not a single lap was completed without a safety car after a wet qualifying where George Russell achieved the second position on the grid.

Since then, the historic team founded by the late Sir Frank Williams has gone through the worst phase in its history, even coming close to disappearing. However, with hard work and the leadership of James Vowles, Williams is gradually returning to the place it deserves, and Carlos Sainz's podium in Baku is a first glimpse of that.

"I have had a podium car many times, but this one is going to stay with me for my whole life"

James Vowles' Bet

There is no denying the boldness of James Vowles, who decided to leave a comfortable and successful position at Mercedes to accept the challenge of revitalizing Williams.

And we say boldness because, after all, his predecessors had paid the cruelest price for their failure in trying to do the same. Paddy Lowe, Simon Roberts, and Jos Capito said goodbye to Formula 1 after being replaced, and nothing indicated that Vowles' luck would follow the same path.

However, two and a half years later, James Vowles is starting to reap the rewards of a methodical, rational, and solid plan with which Williams is increasingly resembling that historic team that once dominated Formula 1.

Sainz's Confidence

James Vowles himself has valued Carlos Sainz's podium in Baku, and he has not hidden his emotion for this achievement at all.

"Carlos put his trust and faith in me a year ago. Seeing what that podium has meant for him and for the team is the reward for that. I can't wait to take the trophy to the 1,000 people at the factory in the UK. It means a lot," admitted the Williams team principal.

Vowles was part of 267 podiums during his time at Mercedes, as well as a few more with BrawnGP. However, he agrees with Carlos Sainz in pointing to this last one as the most significant of his professional career.

"I share that feeling with him. I have had a podium car many times, but this one is going to stay with me for my whole life," said the British engineer, aware of where Williams was when he arrived in Grove. "We have achieved this from a position where we were last and have fought to grow".

Carlos Sainz's podium at Williams also has significant practical value, as it secures Williams in the fifth position in the championship with seven races left in the season. If confirmed, it would be an exceptional result for a team that decided to sacrifice 2025 for the benefit of the next year and the new regulations.

Fotos: Williams Racing