Qatar GP: More misfortune for Williams Racing

Franco Colapinto:
"I’m disappointed to be taken out in Turn 1 after trying to leave a big enough gap on my inside. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time and there was nothing I could do to avoid it. It’s quite frustrating as the race had plenty of opportunities to make things happen that could’ve put us in the fight. At the end of the day, it’s part of racing unfortunately. We’ll need to assess the damage from today. It’s important to have a clean weekend in Abu Dhabi and aim to finish the season on a high."

Alex Albon:
"It was a tricky day. We were a little bit in no man’s land most of the race being towards the back and we were struggling with pace. The Safety Car made it interesting, and we took that opportunity to put on Softs. It was an optimistic gamble, but one worth taking because of the pace we had. We knew that on every Safety Car restart the first lap was the only one I could overtake and so we made up some positions and we were in the points for a bit, but we were relying on another Safety Car which didn’t come so then the tyres started degrading quite badly. For ten laps we had some good pace but ultimately we were not quick enough."

Sven Smeets Sporting Director:
"A difficult evening for the team today. At the race start we immediately lost Franco as he was hit by Ocon who in turn was hit by Hulkenberg. There was nothing Franco could do other than to retire in lap 1. After a few laps it was clear that with Alex we had to change our strategy and decided to run as long as possible. When the Safety Car came out because some cars were having punctures, we decided to put Alex on the Soft tyre and not onto the Hard. We knew it was a gamble but at one point we were running up in 9th place. Unfortunately, our decision didn’t pay off today and Alex had to make another stop just before the end. A tough day for the team again but we are going to Abu Dhabi to fight for points in the last race of the season."

Track: Lusail International Circuit, Qatar