‘Brave’ Williams reveals the FW48 after missing Barcelona shakedown

The sole team yet to run its 2026 car on track, Williams took a huge step forward in its season’s preparations as it unveiled the FW48 to the world in an online event.

The unveiling took place ahead of a filming day, after which the FW48 will head to Bahrain for pre-season testing, where Williams will get its first real chance to gather crucial data ahead of the new season.

Meet the Williams FW48

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Although 10 of the 11 Formula 1 teams laid down the laps at the Barcelona circuit last week, Williams opted against attending.

Williams team principal James Vowles said at the time: “It clearly wasn’t our plan, and it’s incredibly painful, but I do want it to be acknowledged as the result of our determination to push the limits of performance under the new regulations.”

So much so, he told select media including PlanetF1.com that “realistically” the FW48 “itself is the best I’ve seen us produce here, those are facts I can put down.”

Williams took the covers of the all-new car online on Tuesday, the FW48 not only trading off yesteryear’s ground-effect aerodynamics for overbody airflow, but it also incorporates active aerodynamics with moveable front and rear wings.

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The car, which will once again be driven by Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon, will require a different driving style from the drivers as they manage not only the active aerodynamics – movable front and rear wings – but also the engine management over the course of a lap.

Never mind overtake and boost mode, just getting the most out of 50/50 split between electrical and combustion power will take thinking and planning from the drivers.

“I’m really pleased to be able to show our livery for 2026, it’s a really important milestone for us in pre-season. And I’m also delighted that we’re able to show it to the entire factory here today in Grove. We had Alex and Carlos by my side and revealed it to the organisation, and went down very well,” Vowles said during Tuesday’s livery launch.

“I personally think it looks fantastic for a number of reasons. It’s got the white in it, which we ran out a little bit in Austin last year, and wanted to keep that in there. It’s still got that really important key line, the red in there, and it’s got, obviously the blue, which is iconic with Williams and ourselves, and I think it looks fantastic.

“It’s also on the day that we’ve announced Barclays as our new official banking partner. It’s just a later example of our major global and believing in our mission and our journey top, because I can’t fold my arms anymore. But also on the car, just an exceptional commercial winter.

“It really is an example of how this team is not just transforming, the journey you all know, which is more important to me and the partners that want to be on with this, that journey.

“Looking ahead to this year, I’m really excited personally, as the sport enters a new era. And even from the testing, you can see it’s a little bit unpredictable to understand who’s where and what stage, and this is a chance for us to really keep moving forward as an organisation.

“We still have Carlos and Alex, which is an absolutely fantastic lineup, and I think even more important in this regulation set, because the load on the driver goes up, I think everyone’s pretty much assessed that, and you need experience and ability and high level intelligence in the car, which they both hold in order to get most out of it.

“We’re not naive about the challenge ahead of us, or the challenge that’s amongst us right now, and the jump from fifth to fourth is, in my experience, exponentially more difficult than what we’ve already achieved, and the only way to achieve that against competitors that themselves are striving and moving forward is simply by pushing the absolute boundaries and being brave and the decisions you’re making.

“We don’t expect to be fighting for the championship, but we do expect that ’25 is our new established baseline, and to keep moving the business forward year on year from then onwards, nobody, and I’m sure you realize this as well. Really knows what’s going to happen in Melbourne. It’s both.

“There’s a development race. It depends what parts people bring. But also it looks interesting, certainly in the top five, I would say. So our key point at the moment is to make sure that we push like mad, catch up and go to Bahrain with our heads held high and keep moving forward.”

Last season Williams finished fifth in the championship with two podiums on the board. This year, though, it is hoping to build on that with the all-new cars leveling the playing field.

The FW48 will be powered by a Mercedes-AMG HPP 2026 1.6-litre V6, a power unit that has already proven its reliability with Mercedes covering 500 laps during its three days at the Barcelona circuit.

Between Mercedes, McLaren and Alpine, Brixworth’s V6 engine covered more laps than any other manufacturer’s engine.

The teams, this time including Williams, will return to the test arena on 11 February for a three-day test in Bahrain before a second outing later in the month.

The new Formula 1 season gets underway on 6 March with the opening practice session at the Australian Grand Prix.

Additional reporting by Thomas Maher

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