Williams' 2026 season, measured: eleven points in six races, and none since Monaco
Williams scored all eleven of their 2026 points in the first six rounds, and nothing in the eight races since Monaco. They have also failed to finish eight of their 28 entries on a Mercedes engine. Every race for Carlos Sainz and Alexander Albon, measured.
Alexander Albon's eighth place at Monaco in June was the best Williams result of 2026 so far. It was also the last time the team scored.
All eleven of Williams' points came in the first six rounds: ninth three times for Carlos Sainz, in China, Miami and Canada, tenth in Miami and eighth at Monaco for Alex Albon. In the eight races since, neither car has finished in the top ten. The team is ninth in the constructors' championship, and has failed to finish eight of its twenty-eight entries, more than any other team on a Mercedes engine.
Every message the drivers exchanged with their engineers on air this season, from the Canadian Grand Prix onward, is on Carlos Sainz's and Alexander Albon's team radio pages.
Every race of their 2026 season
The first seven rounds:
Round
Grand Prix
Sainz
Albon
1
Australian
15th
12th
2
Chinese
9th
Did not start
3
Japanese
15th
20th
4
Miami
9th
10th
5
Canadian
9th
Retired
6
Monaco
Retired
8th
7
Barcelona
12th
Not classified
Finishing positions in each Grand Prix. Bold marks a points finish.
The next seven:
Round
Grand Prix
Sainz
Albon
8
Austrian
Retired
17th
9
British
17th
Retired
10
Belgian
16th
15th
11
Hungarian
18th
17th
12
Dutch
16th
Retired
13
Italian
13th
17th
14
Spanish (Madrid)
Retired
15th
No Williams has finished in the top ten since round 6.
The season in numbers
11 points, ninth in the constructors' championship: Sainz 6, Albon 5. Sainz's season is measured in Carlos Sainz's 2026.
All 11 in the first six rounds. None in the eight since.
Best result: eighth, Albon at Monaco.
8 of 28 entries unfinished, 29%: Albon five, Sainz three. On the same Mercedes engine, the works team has three and Alpine one.
The fade
The first six rounds were respectable for a midfield team: points in four of them. From Barcelona onward, Williams have started between thirteenth and twentieth and finished outside the top ten every time. The two teams behind them in the championship, Aston Martin on 3 and Cadillac on 0, are the only ones that have scored less.
The grid positions show the same drift, though it is smaller than the change in results. Sainz started 15.7 on average in the first six rounds and 16.8 in the eight since; Albon 16.3 and 17.2. The bigger change came on Sunday: from finishing on the edge of the top ten to finishing between thirteenth and eighteenth.
Williams use the same Mercedes power unit as Mercedes, McLaren and Alpine, which makes the reliability record hard to put on the engine. Eight non-finishes on it compares with three for the works team and one for Alpine. Every team's record is in every 2026 F1 retirement.
On the radio
Monaco, their best afternoon, produced the season's most human strategy exchange. Sainz's engineer asked what he thought of the backup plan:
Carlos SainzWilliams · Monaco Grand Prix 2026 · Race · 15:40:59 local
EngineerWhat do you think about Plan B?
DriverErr, repeat what was Plan B, now I forgot it.
"Err, repeat what was Plan B, now I forgot it." Albon finished eighth that day, and his engineer's message afterwards mentioned what the car had been fighting all weekend:
Alexander AlbonWilliams · Monaco Grand Prix 2026 · Race · 17:36:15 local
EngineerAlex it was a tough afternoon to walk away with, V8 is a good result, well done to you, I know it's tough out there with all the battery issues and the car, I'll look into that, but well done, V8, really good points, we'll keep moving forward.
DriverYeah thanks James. Yeah it'll be interesting to see how everyone watches this. Hey so who is it? Straight by Steve. Yeah well done, it's been a weekend so thanks everyone, thanks for all the hard work.
"I know it's tough out there with all the battery issues and the car."
What is left
Nine rounds remain, starting with Baku on 26 September. Baku has had a safety car in most of its races, the kind of afternoon on which a team outside the top ten can score again. The full table is in the 2026 standings.
What this measures, and what it does not
Results, grid positions and points come from Formula 1's official timing data and match the published standings after the Spanish Grand Prix.
A non-finish includes crashes as well as failures. The timing data records that a car retired, not why.
Quotes are taken only from lines where the speaker label and the words agree.
Frequently asked questions
How many points do Williams have in 2026?
Eleven after the Spanish Grand Prix, all of them scored in the first six rounds: six for Carlos Sainz and five for Alexander Albon.
When did Williams last score points?
At the Monaco Grand Prix, round 6, where Alexander Albon finished eighth. They have not scored in the eight races since.
What engine do Williams use in 2026?
Mercedes power units, the same as Mercedes, McLaren and Alpine.
Who drives for Williams in 2026?
Carlos Sainz and Alexander Albon.
Sources
Results, grid positions and points: Formula 1 timing data via FastF1, matching the published standings after the 2026 Spanish Grand Prix
Every radio message quoted: our own team radio archive
Hear the next one live
Some of the best radio of the season comes from the middle of the field, where a strategy call is the difference between a point and nothing.
The Formula Dream app plays live driver radio as it is broadcast, transcript beside the audio, and collects every FIA document of the weekend as it is published. There is also a live timing Dashboard, currently in beta.
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Nineteen Chinese Grands Prix have been held in Shanghai since 2004. Lewis Hamilton won six, pole won twelve, and in 2026 Kimi Antonelli took the first win of his career there, at 19, with Hamilton on the podium for Ferrari for the first time. Every winner, grid slot and safety car, measured.
