Williams struggled at the start of the year with an FW45 that was still lacking downforce compared to most of its rivals, while also being hard to balance across various circuit layouts and conditions.
But led by Albon, the team scored big on those few tracks that suited its car well, including the Anglo-Thai driver's seventh-place finishes in Canada and Monza, to get ahead of fellow strugglers AlphaTauri, Alfa Romeo and Haas.
