Steiner issues brutal Vowles verdict: 'Williams are going backwards'

Guenther Steiner has publicly called out James Vowles, declaring that Williams are "going backwards" under the former Mercedes strategist's leadership. The brutal assessment lands as Williams sits ninth in the Constructors' Championship at the halfway mark of 2026, a humbling fall from their podium-scoring P5 finish just one season ago.

Why it matters:

Williams carried genuine momentum into the new regulatory era after Carlos Sainz bagged two podiums during an impressive 2025 debut, but that optimism has since evaporated. After missing the pre-season Barcelona shakedown, the Grove outfit has spent the campaign fighting at the back rather than pushing toward the front. Steiner's intervention reflects mounting external concern that Vowles' project is stalling when it should be accelerating, adding unwelcome pressure to an already fragile operation.

The details:

• Williams managed points in four of the first six races, but has endured a pointless drought since the Barcelona GP.
• At the Hungarian GP, Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz finished P17 and P18 respectively, the team's worst showing of the year.
• Aston Martin's surge: The Silverstone team introduced a major upgrade package in Hungary and has overtaken Williams in the order, with a Honda power unit upgrade also set to hit the track at Zandvoort.
• The ultimatum: On the Red Flags Podcast, Steiner joked that Vowles needs time to "read his emails," but warned that if the team is still struggling five or six races into the 2027 season, management should make a change.
• Direction of travel: Steiner stressed that despite early promises of a swift recovery, Williams has made progress "in the wrong direction" and is regressing rather than advancing.

What's next:

The second half of the 2026 season is now a direct referendum on Vowles' leadership. He must prove Williams has a concrete path back to the midfield before next year begins, because patience in Formula 1 is notoriously short. If Aston Martin's surge continues and Williams remains anchored to the rear of the grid, Steiner's prediction of an early 2027 managerial change could quickly become reality.