Williams has announced that it is to miss next week's test at the circuit Barcelona-Catalunya.

While McLaren is to miss the first day of the five-day test, Williams has revealed that it will skip the test entirely.

"Atlassian Williams F1 Team has taken the decision not to participate in next week's shakedown test in Barcelona following delays in the FW48 programme as we continue to push for maximum car performance," reads a statement issued by the Grove outfit.

"The team will instead conduct a series of tests including a VTT programme next week with the 2026 car to prepare for the first official test in Bahrain and the first race of the season in Melbourne.

"We are looking forward to getting on track in the coming weeks and want to thank all our fans for your continued support - there is a lot to look forward to together in 2026."

The news will only add to speculation that the exclusion of all media not oonly from the Barcelona test, but also the first test in Bahrain, is due to fears of issues as the teams get to grips with the new regulations.

Amidst clams that the car has failed to pass the mandatory crash tests, the team's absence evokes memories of 2019 when the Grove outfit missed the first two and a half days of testing due to the car not being ready.

At the opening race the FW42 was over a second slower than its nearest rival, with neither driver - Robert Kubica and George Russell - getting beyond Q1 over the course of the entire season, and ending the year with just one point, courtesy of Kubica's tenth in Germany.

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by Anthony, 26/01/2026 17:49

"If I didn’t know better I might think that the current private equity owners haven’t been investing quite as much as they have led people to assume and are hoping that in the near future they can flip the business to someone else for a big profit. "

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2. Posted by Editor, 26/01/2026 10:29

"Worth remembering that when James Vowles first took control at Grove he revealed that it was clear that there had been no significant investment in the team for twenty years.

Worth noting is the FACT that under Sir Frank the team was among the very first to realise the financial potential of licencing its brand, and was pretty much ruthless when it came to ensuring that it wasn't exploited."

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3. Posted by ffracer, 25/01/2026 21:00

"@Tyrbiter - 4 times the workforce of a 80's F1 team at least, my friend. Mercedes AMG F1 is more than a thousand apparently... which makes their relentless excuses so frustrating.

I used to be a Williams fan - watching Alan Jones, Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost, Damon Hill and Jacques Villeneuve win World championships was absolutely brilliant but after years of bullheaded leadership and one too many botched tire - you say Tyre lol - pitstops, simply destroyed my faith in them. The subsequent failures to build timely racecars and parts had alarm bells going off and the double disqualifications meant that they have no failsafe system in place. How does management allow a company to run with noone checking and triple checking the work?!

The current owners' attention to detail is astounding when it comes to multi liveries and team apparel because the revenue on merchandise is simply fantastic... and yet, they can't build a proper tub to pass a crash test or consider stocking enough spares, to match the demand of more sprint races/ race weekends... more alarm bells. Because the owners are banking on an impressive history ... probably to unload it given the current F1 team value.

If it was up to me, and in any other sport where a team has failed to meet the necessary requirements to compete, a formal investigation would ensue and they would be suspended. This is the pinnacle of motorsport and some teams have spent more on failed applications. Enough now. "

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4. Posted by Tyrbiter, 24/01/2026 17:53

"@ffracer I didn't know they have 4 times the workforce but then the complexity of modern F1 may require that.

I no longer have any emotional investment in Williams, that went to a great extent with the departure of Patrick Head in 2011 (coincidentally the same year where I saw Sky unseat a terrestrial broadcaster from all-race F1 coverage and thought "Stuff the lot of 'em!") but I suppose I still believed in Frank because he was such a bloody-minded old git."

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5. Posted by ffracer, 24/01/2026 12:18

"I know that there is tremendous support for Williams with an incredible fanbase and deep ties in the F1 community but... and I will get vilified for this and that's fine, I must say what I feel - and that this isn't the first time since 2019 either. Lack of tubs, floor pieces and suspension during the Albon/Sergeant era. Last year, the team together with Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon had some great drives and got some good points... but they had glaring issues and the disqualification didn't help. This is a shadow of the 80's-90's team of championship winning titans with over quadruple the workforce. If I were Stefano Domenicali or the FIA, I would stop harassing all the other teams and start investigating them. Never thought I'd say this: Enough with the humiliating press conferences: Field a proper effort or get someone like Christian Horner or Flavio Briatore who can.... enough now. "

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6. Posted by Tyrbiter, 24/01/2026 0:14

"Relatively small team, too much to do with too few people in too little time since the end of last season?"

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7. Posted by ClarkwasGod, 23/01/2026 14:28

"Hopefully not a repeat of 2019 - maybe they have a Brawn-like development and wish to keep it under wraps."

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Williams to miss Barcelona test

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