Vowles believes rivals created 'narrative' surrounding Mercedes prediction

09:55, 21 Dec

byOlly Darcy

Williams team principal James Vowles believes that the favourite tag that has been given to Mercedes is the result of a "narrative" from other rivals.

"Part of the speculation that appeared, I think, was one team and PU manufacturer trying to create a narrative to make some changes."

- James Vowles

The British team have been using power units from the German team since 2014, with the season marking the start of the hybrid era in Formula 1.

The German team excelled in their development to dominate the rest of the grid from 2014-2021, and as brand-new regulation changes come into effect for the 2026 season, they have been touted as favourites do to the same once again.

However, Vowles believes that there is not much truth to the tag that has been given to Mercedes.

Williams impressed in 2025 by finishing best-of-the-rest in the Constructors' Championship with 137 points - Photo: RacePictures

"I like your optimism first of all, but no one knows, no one of the engine manufacturers knows where they're going to fall out," the Williams team boss explained to GPblog and others in Abu Dhabi.

"Part of the speculation that appeared, I think, was one team and PU manufacturer trying to create a narrative to make some changes, to be completely clear. But no one really knows.

"I strongly doubt that Ferrari have done a poor job. They are very good at getting us right year on year as well. Honda this year have produced a benchmark engine as well. So I don't think it's going to be like 2014, where you have such a runaway that you can have all the teams carried with it."

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The 46-year-old continued on to say that many years of work on the 2026 power units has already been done.

"I think Mercedes, we've been working specifically on 2026 with them since early 2024, when we signed the agreement, and what I can say is they've done good preparation. Let's see what that translates to," Vowles said.

"In terms of our aspirations, I think the top three again would be above what we're expecting. I've made the sort of comment that I sort of mean it. Stepping forward year on year is a sensible goal for us. The top three would be aspirational."

James Vowles signed a long-term contract extension to stay at Williams as team principal in June 2025 - Photo: RacePictures.

Mercedes under loophole scrutiny

Mercedes team principal and CEO Toto Wolff was also quizzed on the favourite tag that has been given to Mercedes for the 2026 season, agreeing with Vowles about the competitive nature of the current grid.

However, soe regulation controversy has already occurred regarding two different manufactuers, including Mercedes.

The German team, along with Red Bull, are rumoured to have come under scrutiny after finding a potential loophole in the new regulations, devising a legal way to increase the compression ratio and unlocking up to 15 extra horsepower, theoretically worth around three tenths of a second per lap.

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