Williams F1 boss James Vowles explains Miami GP incident, citing a radio miscommunication, not driver error, as cause of Sainz-Albon mix-up.
In Miami, a miscommunication inside the Williams F1 team led to an awkward on-track moment: Alex Albon overtook teammate Carlos Sainz, even though the Spaniard had been told it wouldn’t happen.
Team Principal James Vowles has now clarified that Albon didn’t go rogue, rather, the confusion was down to poorly timed and unclear messages from the pit wall.
“We told both race engineers that Alex Albon had a reliability concern and needed clean air to help cool the car,” Vowles explained. “The idea was to create a small gap between the cars, but the message wasn’t delivered clearly enough. It wasn’t obvious whether overtaking was allowed or not.”
According to Vowles, both drivers were told not to race each other, just not at the same moment, or with enough clarity. “Carlos Sainz was told Alex wouldn’t attack. Alex got a similar message, but only after he’d already activated DRS and pulled alongside.”
So, was Albon at fault? Not at all, says Vowles. “This wasn’t a driver ignoring instructions. It was a failure on our part, on how and when we communicate with our engineers and drivers. That’s something we must fix.”
Vowles added that even if the message had landed perfectly, the team was planning to swap the cars soon after. “Carlos had damage from Lap 1, and it was getting worse. The floor was degrading, and Alex was naturally catching him.”
“The time loss was just a few tenths, but enough that we would likely have swapped them anyway. Again, that should’ve been a team decision, not a surprise for Carlos.”
Vowles fully understands Sainz’s frustration. “Honestly, I’d be more concerned if our drivers weren’t upset in a moment like that. They’re out there giving everything. Carlos was fighting for a well-earned P5, so of course he was upset.”
“We had a long debrief after the race and again on Monday, not just about the incident, which only lasted a few seconds, but how we improve from it. We owe that to the drivers.”
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