David Coulthard warns “heads will roll” if Williams FW48 upgrade fails

Former Formula 1 driver David Coulthard has warned that “heads will roll” if Williams’s upgraded FW48 fails to deliver an immediate step forward in performance. 

The Grove outfit has struggled all season with an overweight car. After 14 rounds, it sits ninth in the constructors’ championship with 11 points: six points from Carlos Sainz and five points from Alex Albon.

But it has now introduced a major upgrade package, which team principal James Vowles described as creating an almost B-spec car, at this weekend’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix in a bid to propel it up the grid.

During an episode of the Up To Speed podcast, the former McLaren driver explained he expects a decent leap from the Vowles-led team.

“I believe, having spoken to some members of the team, that it is a significant step in terms of the car will now be on weight, which we know 10kg is worth three to four tenths of a second around a lap,” Coulthard said.

“So carrying weight is just putting yourself on the back foot. And what it will also do is it will be a step towards the direction they’re taking that car for next year.

“There are a few aerodynamic tweaks for next year’s regulations, especially around the front of the floor, which may or may not help some teams over others.

“But I’m expecting a little bit like we saw with Aston [Martin], there was a notable step forward in their performance when they brought their B-spec car. And if it doesn’t happen, of course there’s going to be some heads rolling, isn’t there?”

Sainz and Albon finished the first practice session in Baku in 12th and 13th and the second practice session in 17th and 16th, respectively.

The Azerbaijan Grand Prix will take place on Saturday at 3pm local time (noon UK time).

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– The Motorsport.com Team

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