Alex Albon has stressed Williams must continue to capitalise on having a points-scoring car in Formula 1 amid the recognition that it might not last throughout 2025.
Williams achieved a second double-points finish in five rounds last weekend in Saudi Arabia as impressive teamwork between the drivers secured seventh and eighth.
The six-point return was enough to propel the Grove-based squad back above Haas and into fifth place in the Constructors’ Championship, behind the leading quartet.
But while the side has sustained its most productive start to a season in a decade, Williams’ attention remains engrossed in the impending regulation change in 2026.
Albon has acknowledged that the call could come at a cost to Williams’ competitiveness in the short term, though, depending on the improvements its rivals discover.
“We have to be quite realistic,” Albon, who has amassed 20 points to reside as high as eighth place in the Drivers’ Championship, cautioned post-race in Jeddah.
“We don’t know what everyone’s doing in terms of priority for next year.
“We’ve gone off to a hot start, which kind of changes the dynamic of how well we want to do this season, or sacrifice next season.
“We want to make a big step for next year. Now is the time to score points, really.
“With a good start, we have to score points every weekend.
“We don’t know when the next midfield team is going to bring an upgrade and, when they do, that could be our run over.”
How the F1 schedule has helped Williams
With five races in six weeks to begin the season, Albon has admitted the “relentless” schedule has helped Williams preserve the advantage over its direct competitors.
“A lot of teams haven’t bought an upgrade yet so far this year, and we’re making use of that,” the Anglo-Thai driver added.
“Because of how tightly grouped these first few races are, when you start with a good car in race one, you can carry that for a few races, which is why it’s so important.”
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