James Vowles: podium pride + Williams’ winning potential

With 16 Drivers’ and Constructors’ World Championships combined, Williams are the third most successful team in Formula 1 history – behind Ferrari and McLaren.

But they haven’t won a title since 1997 and it’s 13 years since they last won a race, so Team Principal James Vowles is on a mission to bring the glory days back to Williams.

In 2025, the team have taken big steps towards success. Carlos Sainz secured the team’s first podium in four years when he finished third in Baku, and they’ve amassed their highest points total since 2016.

Speaking to Tom Clarkson, James reveals what he and Carlos spoke about over dinner before that sensational podium, why that result means so much to the whole team, and the reasons Carlos had endured a frustrating season up to that point.

On the other side of the garage, James shares what he thinks is different about Alex Albon this year and how he’s risen to the challenge of having a much more experienced and competitive teammate.

And while Williams have performed better than expected in 2025 with such a strong driver line-up, their main focus is 2026. So what opportunities will the new era of Formula 1 bring them? Given James’s first-hand experience of the intense championship battles between Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg at Mercedes, what would his approach be if Alex and Carlos are fighting for a title in the coming years?


This episode is sponsored by:

Indeed: listeners of this show will get a seventy-five dollar sponsored job credit to
get your jobs more visibility at indeed.com/GRID

Shopify: sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial and start selling today at shopify.com/beyondthegrid

Vanta: visit vanta.com/GRID to sign up for a free demo today