Under-promise and over-deliver is a mantra that many Formula 1 teams like to live by. After all, it keeps the pressure off beforehand and makes you look like a bigger hero afterwards.
So it was interesting on Thursday, when Williams announced a long-term contract extension for boss James Vowles, that it boldly declared his continuation being to “lead the team’s push for Formula 1 world championship glory.”
That talk of title ambitions for a squad that has not managed it since 1997 may seem grand, but it is the very catalyst that has prompted them to stick with each other.
Speaking exclusively to The Race about the target, Vowles said: “It is bold, but that's why I signed here. I didn't sign here to be mid-grid or anything less than fighting for world championships.
“It's bold because we're nowhere near in the state to do that today. But the investment we are doing is for that. It's not to finish fourth or third.
“It is to be able to win world championships again. And that's the clear statement of intent from both parties on that one. It's just the time it takes.
"The reason why I feel it's bold is because we've taken a team that was, frankly, nearly last year.
“We're doing better this year, but we're nowhere near the front. That's a monumental leap."
Sorting the basics
Vowles has changed a lot at Williams since he arrived; having spoken many times about how far behind the curve its infrastructure and systems were.
And from the outside it would be easy to think that everything is almost in place for where it needs to be.
It has a top-tier driver line-up in Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz; and it has a Mercedes engine deal in place for what appears to be the benchmark powerunit for the new regulations.
Plus, considering it has stepped back from developing its current car, being fifth in the standings with more points than the three previous seasons combined points to rapid progress.
But from Vowles’ perspective, getting Williams to where it is right now is only a small step compared to what is needed if it is to achieve that coveted title.
“It's exponentially more difficult to step forward now compared to early on, but that message is what's resonating inside [the team],” he said.
“I've said this before to a certain extent, but this car wasn't a focus. All we did here was just some basics, right? It's nothing special on this car.
“What we're doing for ‘26 and ‘27 is really ground up. It’s a redesign of some of the processes, structures and systems, and how we go about building a car. It's incorporating everyone across the organisation, rather than small ideas that are brought together, maybe or maybe not in a way that doesn't work.
“I would say already, you should see a change next year, and then the steps forward in ’27 and ’28. Those exponential gains should come in that period, based on what we're changing now.”
Vowles cites the example of McLaren, which took years to get its structures and processes in the right place before it started showing results, as exactly the kind of timeframe his own squad faces.
“Where we are now, was just clearing up things,” he said. “The top four, they are giants in the sport, but in the same way McLaren was able to break into it.
“They were always very competent. They just needed a few bits of structure in the right place, and the investment in the right place. And I see our journey is not too dissimilar to theirs, just five years down the line after they're doing it.”
Russell bigging Williams up
Not everyone thinks it will take that long though, with George Russell having suggested earlier this season that his former Williams team could be a genuine contender in 2026.
The team's early development switch off this year's car, allied to the extra wind tunnel and CFD testing for 2026 it got over the first half of the year because of finishing eighth in the constructors’ championship last year, were factors that Russell felt could make Williams super strong.
Russell said: “When you look at the team that finished last in the constructors' last year, how much more windtunnel time they have on McLaren for example for 2026 - it's immense.
“And when you're in a new era of regulations, you're finding masses of performance every single week you're doing the windtunnel. Maybe it won't be one of the top four teams who's best next year.
“You've seen how well Williams are doing already this year and there's rumours they're already 100 percent on next year, they're going to have a Mercedes engine in the back, maybe they're going to be the team to beat. Nobody knows.”
Vowles welcomes the public vote of confidence from Russell, but reckons it is unrealistic for his squad to think it has a chance against Mercedes.
“I think he's very kind, but there is a but to it,” said Vowles about Russell's remarks. “I know how efficient Mercedes is in all the structures and systems. I know how much further forward we're having to pull our [production] dates relative to them in order to achieve it.
“So, if you treat it as the efficiency per minute you can spend in different infrastructures, and that includes wind tunnel, we're still not where we need to be.
“That is the simple truth behind it. But I do think you'll see a step forward from us, because we really have put a lot of focus into what we're doing for '26.
"Treat it this way. It's a clean sheet of paper and that's why it presents opportunity.
“But the efficiencies, or the inefficiencies we still carry, which we are chomping through but not quick enough for '26, are still there. So it's correct, we'll have a little bit of a head start. And with the ATR change a head start there, but not so much that others couldn't catch up.”
Finishing the mission
But just because Vowles does not think Williams is there yet, nor will it be next season, does not mean he is sceptical about it never getting there.
His commitment to the team with his new deal, allied to a vote of confidence from the board, is because there is a shared belief about exactly what is possible if the squad continues on the path it is on right now.
Matthew Savage, the chairman of both Williams and its owner Dorilton Capital, has talked of the team and Vowles “completing the mission that we are on together.”
And from Vowles’ perspective, getting a new contract sorted was just part of the natural process of getting every element in place.
“This is why it was a really natural point for me and our board to basically shake hands and go, do we agree we've got the foundations to do what we said we don't do – which is to fight for the world championship in the future?” explained Vowles on agreeing to that new contract now.
“They've been well and truly doing everything to their word, which is to say, the investment they are doing is significantly serious.
“The team is moving forward as a result of it, and we're completely aligned on how to be doing this in the future as well.
“That includes, from the first conversation that took place back in '22, this is what we need to do with the drivers - and we need a top-tier driver lineup. This is what we have to do in terms of investment. This is the team size we are targeting.
“We have to take our time and make sure we do the foundations properly, no shortcuts. And we've been really aligned on that all the way through and working to that.
“And so because we're now at a natural point where we're a couple of years in, and now the next stage of this is really about five years in front of us.
"So it's a really natural time to align ourselves. It is: do we want to be together long term? It was yes, both sides. So, okay, let's do it.”
