JV on the performance roadmap through 2026

James Vowles outlines the development plan for the FW48 and explains why there is still plenty of time to unlock performance this season

Published

19 JUN 2026

Est. reading time

2 min

James Vowles has given fans an honest assessment of where the FW48 stands - and how Atlassian Williams F1 Team plans to move it forward across the remainder of the 2026 campaign.

Speaking on the latest episode of The Vowles Verdict, presented by Kraken, James was clear that while progress is being made, the team are still carrying over some of the compromises that shaped its winter.

“The winter was difficult and we didn’t achieve the car we wanted,” Vowles admitted. “And even today, we’re racing a car that’s still above the weight limit, with certain properties that we don’t want. Those are just facts.”

Despite that, the results across recent rounds show that progress is being made.

“What we can go through and look at, though, is across Miami, Montreal and Monaco, we were in a point-scoring position,” he explained. “That means we have added performance at the rate required in order to move forward.”

Barcelona, however, served as a reminder that weaknesses remain.

“What you see in Barcelona is more of a blip,” James said. “It relates to some of those characteristics of the track and elements that are not right in the car.”

Discover how JV features in our Marvel comic:

AWF1 Team x Marvel - Iron Man: Racing Towards Doom Monaco Special Edition Cover

Limited Edition

AWF1 Team x Marvel - Iron Man: Racing Towards Doom Monaco Special Edition Cover

···

Limited Edition

AWF1 Team x Marvel - Iron Man: Racing Towards Doom Miami Special Edition Cover

···

The focus now is on addressing those weaknesses through a phased development programme that will continue deep into the 2026 season.

“We do have a plan for the season as to how we rectify and fix a number of them,” he continued.

“There is a good performance pipeline coming. It won’t be in one go. There’ll be some elements around Silverstone or Spa, then some more as we go towards the August break - and quite a lot after the August break, where we’ll bring what is really quite a new car to the track.”

While that may feel like a long wait, Vowles stressed there is still plenty of racing left for those changes to make a difference.

“Now that feels like a long way off and it feels late in the season,” he said. “But the reality is we’re only one third of the way through the season now, and even post-August break there will still be around nine plus races left to go.”

For Vowles, the message is simple: the time is there, and it is now all about making the most of it.

“The point I’m making is that we have time to remedy this and fix it,” he concluded. “But we need to make sure we bring that performance to the car in a timely fashion.”

Catch up with The Vowles Verdict:

Team Principal James Vowles answers your questions after the Barcelona GP, presented by Kraken