Carlos Sainz is pleased with his starts at the beginning of the season.

      We have already quoted the words of Alex Albon, the Williams driver, that the FW48 car is full of shortcomings – from the excessive weight of the chassis to low reliability and efficiency. Carlos Sainz agrees with him, but the Spanish driver managed to find one positive aspect of the 2026 car – the starts.

      Carlos Sainz: “We know that we are too slow. The team is falling behind the competitors, and this is not the level we were hoping for, nor the one we expected to see.

      Partly, it’s about the weight – the team understands that the car needs to be made lighter. Another problem, and a very significant one, is related to downforce, and we still have a long way to go to improve in that component.

      Moreover, the car lacks reliability. In China, Alex didn’t even make it to the start and lost a lot of time in practice, constantly facing issues. To be frank, we need to make a step forward. We have too many problems in different areas, and it’s important for the whole team to come together and give it their all.

      But it’s good that at the beginning of the season we don’t have problems with starts. I had an incredible start in Melbourne, another great one in the sprint, and yet another confident start in the Sunday race in China. At least in this aspect, I am constantly trying to improve, as I know that a lot depends on the driver, and positions can be gained at the start.”