Carlos Sainz has revealed the message he gave to staff at the Williams Formula 1 team factory following a tough start to the 2026 season.
After securing two podiums with the Grove outfit in his first year with the team in 2025, there were high hopes for 2026. But the team arrived at pre-season testing in Bahrain on the back foot, having missed private testing in Barcelona, and was faced with the challenge of an overweight car.
While it continues to work to improve the 2026-regulation car, Williams has managed to sign contract extensions with both of its drivers, Alex Albon and Sainz.
Speaking on Williams’s official Team Torque podcast alongside Albon and team principal James Vowles, Sainz detailed a recent talk he had with the Williams factory.
“First of all, a Formula 1 team is full of individuals who are brilliant at what they do. That’s why they are in a Formula 1 team, and to be brilliant at what they do, they’ve had to go through similar experiences to what Alex just mentioned,” Sainz explained, referring to Albon’s discussion about building resilience by going through challenging moments in life.
Carlos Sainz, Williams
Photo by: Steven Tee / LAT Images via Getty Images
“So F1 teams are built on individuals that have that resilience and that mental toughness. What I like doing, which is what I mentioned the other day in front of the factory, I said, ‘Take it personal. If we are not where we want to be or if we are going through a tough moment, take it personal.
“‘Build it up on you to say, “I’m going to come out of the other side of it.” Because if you do, your level of confidence ramps up; it multiplies by 10 suddenly. So if you really dig deep and go through that tough moment, you know that what’s after that is a 10 times better version of yourself.’
“And I always try to motivate myself to say I need to get through this because after this there is the paradise, a different level of me. And like pushing through it and taking accountability, taking it personal in a way.”
