But it’s still been a better start for Audi than for Aston Martin, which won’t run before tomorrow and loses at least one day of running.
And then there’s Williams, which has kicked off the 2026 campaign with what can only be described as a black eye by having to sit out the entire Barcelona week. Nobody in their right mind would voluntarily miss out on precious, rare off-track running for the benefit of more development time in the factory, so it definitely is an unwanted setback if you don’t run in Barcelona.
Next week Williams is officially launching its 2026 car and livery and we will have the opportunity to grill James Vowles on the exact causes. To Vowles’ credit, he has been pretty transparent so far with Williams’ rocky journey.
But would the 2026 car being late and overweight – if that is indeed confirmed – after having focused all of 2025 on it, be a strike against Vowles’ name? It’s not a good look, but I honestly don’t think so. Not yet. Owner Dorilton is very much focused on the long-term, and a few bumps and bruises will be accepted as long as there is tangible progress.
Even if it were to turn up in Melbourne with a weight penalty, the FW48 might actually turn out to be quick in the long run. One thing you keep hearing from engineers is that the pecking order towards the end of 2026 could well be quite different to the start of the season given the massive development rate.
I’m not trying to sugarcoat Williams’ woes, it’s just that how you start 2026 will be far less important than how you finish it. The stopwatch will tell us.