Two very different Sundays at Williams: Sainz stood on the Baku rostrum, Albon stood in front of the stewards.
Carlos Sainz called it his “best” podium in Formula 1 after hustling the blue car to third in Azerbaijan, sealing a landmark result for his new team just hours after lining up P2 on the grid. Across the garage, Alex Albon’s afternoon spiralled from recovery drive to reprimand after a Turn 5 tangle with Alpine’s Franco Colapinto earned him a 10-second time penalty and two penalty points on his Super Licence.
Albon’s day was already uphill. A crash in qualifying — the first of six red flags that punctuated Saturday — left him 19th on the grid. Williams then rolled the dice on strategy, pulling him in on lap 15 to try the undercut on Colapinto. Alpine covered it immediately, rejoining just ahead, and the scrap for 13th turned sour at the left-hander.
The contact pitched Colapinto into a spin and tore the endplate from Albon’s front wing. The stewards didn’t take long to pin the blame.
Their ruling read: “Entering Turn 5 Car 23 attempted to overtake Car 43 on the inside however did not have his front axle level with the mirror of Car 43, Car 43 was in control and taking the normal racing line, therefore Car 23 did not have the right to the corner and accordingly was wholly responsible for the collision.”
The decision came with a 10-second penalty and two penalty points, taking Albon’s tally to four. For context, the points accumulate over a 12‑month period; the sanction here was as much about the move’s positioning as the outcome. In short: too optimistic, too late.
Albon didn’t argue it. “I obviously made contact with Franco — not ideal. I’ll hold my hand up,” he told F1’s official channel. He still reached the flag in 13th, but without the points he felt were there for the taking. “I’m frustrated at myself because I haven’t really scored points in the weekend. It was maybe the easiest weekend of them all to score points on. But it happens.”
What took the edge off the frustration was across the timing screens. Sainz, measured when it mattered on a day of treacherous grip and swirling strategy, banked a first podium in Williams colours — and did it the hard way, keeping it clean where Baku so often punishes even the smallest misstep.
“I’m really happy for Carlos,” Albon added. “He drove a very solid weekend from qualifying to the race. He’s been mistake-free, which with this weather and these conditions was not easy. I think the car was quick as well… At the same time, it’s great for the Constructors’ Championship, what Carlos has got. Great for himself as well.”
It’s not often a team leaves Baku both drenched in champagne and with a charge sheet, but that was Williams’ split-screen story. Sainz’s podium underlines the team’s upward curve and the Spaniard’s smooth integration; Albon’s penalty is a reminder of how fine the margins are when you’re clawing for track position in the midfield — half a car length the difference between a clever undercut and a costly visit to the stewards.
The bigger picture for Grove is encouraging. Pace over a lap, race-day efficiency, a driver pairing with bite — it’s all there. The next step is turning weekends like this into a double haul. Sainz provided the headline. Albon, by his own admission, supplied the subplot he’d rather forget.
There will be chances to balance that ledger. Baku exposed everyone; the walls aren’t picky. But Williams’ take-away is simple: if Sainz can keep this level and Albon threads fewer needles and more overtakes, the points column will look a lot healthier, a lot faster.
For now, Sainz goes home with silverware, Albon with homework. Same car, very different Sundays — and a very real sense Williams are in the mix more often than not.
