Michael: Williams not ready to win yet

Williams still need to take big steps with their new FW30 if they are to challenge McLaren and Ferrari for race wins this year, despite their impressive pre-season testing performances

That is the view of the Grove-based team's technical director Sam Michael, who has told this week's Autosport that he believes the team are still not yet at the level they want to be with their new car.

"We've got a good reference but we're definitely not quick enough to go and win Grands Prix, which is what our target is," said Michael. "We're still far enough from McLaren and Ferrari that we need to take some big steps to compete with them.

"But the car's a good step on from where it was last year, and we finished the season relatively strongly. If we can keep going in that direction then that is the most important thing."

Although Williams appear to have made a step up in form among the midfield teams, Michael thinks it is too early to say how they stand against their nearest rivals.

"It's always difficult to see other team's problems because they're not always visible from the outside. And you think they're major problems but there will be other things behind the scenes.

"I don't think BMW have much of a problem looking at their lap times in the last day of Valencia and all the way through Barcelona.

"They are competitive - they may not be where McLaren and Ferrari are but they're definitely at the front of the chasing pack."