Alex Albon plays down hopes that the upgrade Williams plans for Azerbaijan will fix the Grove outfit's issues.

Following the joy of 2025, when it finished best of the rest, 2026 has seen Williams crash back to earth with a resounding thump.

Indeed, as we await the resumption of hostilities at Zandvoort, the Grove outfit is ninth in the standings, and should Aston Martin's upgrade prove successful, the nine-times drivers' and constructors' champions could find themselves at the foot of the standings with Cadillac.

While much of the cause of the team's problems have been put down to weight, as the season has progressed it has become obvious that there is much more to it. Indeed, Albon, worryingly, not only dismisses hopes of the forthcoming upgrade being a magic bullet, he suggests the team's issues go far deeper.

"We know the weaknesses of the car, we know the directions," said the Anglo-Thai driver in Hungary. "I think, as a team, this year, the work that's being done at the factory, it's the biggest effort I've seen from the team to really fight these genetic DNA problems that the team has. I appreciate it. I think we're doing exactly the right things to get back on track.

"It's a shame that we're here in the first place," he added, "but I do believe we're doing the right thing.

"If it's cured by Baku? I doubt it," he admitted. "I think a lot of the Baku stuff has happened. That upgrade was planned quite a long time ago.

"A lot of what we're really, unfortunately, biting into is next year's car," he continued. "It's making sure next year's car doesn't have these traits, it's frustrating!

"Honestly, driving-wise, it's frustrating because I can't even drive really," he explained. "The team's not getting the best from me because I have to under-drive so much.

"The gusts, the wind, the track," he continued. "We talk about that three-wheeling. "It's just... you try and push. I think there were six laps in the race where the wind stabilised and I could finally settle down and get into a rhythm. Then the wind picks up again, and you're back into that cycle. It feels like you're making mistakes, but you're not. You're just braking at the same places, doing the same things, but just lacking consistency. It was a battle out there."