Former F1 boss sets timeline for Williams chief to be sacked

James Vowles looks to camera in a Williams collared shirt — Photo: © IMAGO

Williams F1

Former F1 boss sets timeline for Williams chief to be sacked

Williams are having an awful season...

Chris Deeley

Wednesday 19 August 2026 12:27

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Guenther Steiner has gone in two-footed on Williams team principal James Vowles, suggesting that he could be gone from the team inside a year.

The British team are struggling mightily with the new regulation package, currently ranking as the second slowest team on the grid ahead of only Cadillac after Aston Martin's recent upgrades.

Vowles took over the team in 2023 and immediately oversaw two lean years, tallying 45 points in total, before a huge step forward last year took them to 137 points and fifth in the championship - hailed as a launching pad for future success.

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Instead, the 2026 season has been embarrassingly bad. The team missed initial pre-season testing in Barcelona because their car wasn't ready to run, and things have continued on a downhill trajectory since then. The team hasn't secured a finish above 15th in the last four races, and haven't scored a point since Monaco in early June.

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Steiner: Find a solution by the end of the year

Vowles has said previously that his email inbox is full of ideas to bring the Williams car's weight down and promised that Baku will see a completely upgraded machine.

Steiner joked about those comments on the Red Flags Podcast during the summer break, saying: "As much as I think he’s not doing a good job, I think you need to at least give him time to read all his emails, which he got at the beginning of the year.

"He knows what to do. He just didn’t have time to read them. So, let him read his emails. Find a solution by the end of the year. If he hasn’t got to all the emails by the end of the year, then let him go."

Steiner, who was himself let go by Haas at the end of the 2023 season, continued: "If it is continuing the way that it currently is, five or six races into [next year], there’ll be changes. You’ve had enough time to read your emails and improve things. And if you haven’t, then you’re out."

He added: "They promised us at the beginning of the season, 'We will be back; we know exactly what to do'. Guess what? They're going backwards instead of forwards at the moment."

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F1 Williams Guenther Steiner James Vowles