Although still on the wrong half of the timing screens, Williams were satisfied day one of Formula 1 preseason testing in Barcelona, with Alex Albon making his return to the top flight alongside Nicolas Latifi who is in his third year with the team.
Albon was first out on to the Montemelo track in the morning and was soon in the groove despite the year away, completing 66 laps before handing over to Latifi for the afternoon stanza, the Canadian also racking up 66 laps.
Williams performance boss, Dave Robson gave a rundown of the day: "Very few problems given how many new concepts there are on the car and both drivers had a good opportunity to complete long runs on several of the Pirelli tyre compounds.
"It is very early days, but we have made a good start and have identified several opportunities to improve the performance of the car."
Albon: To be honing in on performance already is a real positive
It was clear that Albon, formerly with Toro Rosso and Red Bull) was immediately comfortable in the Williams and on the pace straight away, reporting later: "I’m really happy with my first proper session in the FW44 this afternoon. The car felt great and the team here in Barcelona did an incredible job.
"We got some good mileage in which is really important and a great start to the year. The first days on track are usually spent making sure everything is running smoothly and, because it is, we managed to make a start working on the performance of the car.
"We only have six days testing before the first race, so to be honing in on performance already is a real positive. I’m looking forward to getting back out tomorrow morning!" added The Thai driver.
Latifi: It was a good day overall
The Canadian reported at the end of the day: "The first session back in the car after a few months off is always interesting. You can tell it’s different design philosophy, especially with the tyres, as it was my first time driving the new 18-inch Pirellis.
"Overall, it feels different and there are a few things that, for me, feel quite positive already compared to last year and there are things that need adjusting. But it is still very early days. This morning’s focus was about understanding the systems and the aero platform sensitivities. It was a good day overall," concluded Latifi.
Albon will drive the car again on Thursday morning before Latifi returns for the afternoon shift.
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