Coulthard warns Williams that 'heads will roll' if Baku B-spec upgrade disappoints

The team has struggled all season with an overweight car and sits ninth in the constructors' championship with 11 points after 14 rounds, split between Carlos Sainz with six and Alex Albon with five. Team principal James Vowles described the Baku package as creating an almost B-spec car, built around a new lightweight chassis designed to finally bring the FW48 down to the minimum weight limit.

Speaking on the Up To Speed podcast, the former F1 driver revealed he had spoken directly to members of the team and expects a notable leap from the upgrade.

Coulthard added that "carrying weight is just putting yourself on the back foot" and was blunt about the consequences if the upgrade falls short of what Williams needs.

"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?" he added.

While Coulthard is optimistic, the Williams drivers have set more cautious targets. Sainz pointed out the upgrade was "more in line with what we should have started the year with". Albon meanwhile said the team needs "a pretty big upgrade" to close its deficit to the midfield.

Thursday's opening practice saw Sainz finish 12th and Albon 13th, with the Spaniard's running disrupted by a brake fire in the pit lane.

By FP2 both drivers had slipped to 16th and 17th. Vowles told Formula1.com the team is "starting to get our head above water" but acknowledged the upgrade alone is not enough.

At the start of the season, the FW48 was understood to be around 28kg over the weight limit. The car was finished late and missed the pre-season shakedown after failing crash tests, leaving Williams on the back foot from the outset.