He’s so far been overshadowed by new team-mate Alex Albon, having found it harder to adapt to the new car than the former Red Bull man, and also endured a series of accidents that have obliged the team to focus as much on replenishing spares as on readying updated parts.
It was all looking so much better for him last year. The Canadian gained some real momentum in the latter half of the season, often giving team-mate George Russell a hard time. When Williams made its breakthrough with a double score in Hungary, it was Latifi who finished seventh, just ahead of Russell.
But his 2021 campaign ended with the late race crash in the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix that triggered a safety car and turned the world championship battle on its head. Subsequently, he was subject to criticism and even death threats on social media. That would have been hard for anyone to deal with, and certainly played on Latifi’s mind heading into 2022.
The last thing he needed was more accidents. But after a disrupted pre-season, he crashed in qualifying and again in the race in Jeddah. There was another major incident when he collided with Lance Stroll in qualifying in Australia, although his countryman took the blame from the FIA stewards.
All drivers have had to adjust to how the 2022 ground effect cars behave, which hasn’t been an easy process for Latifi – particularly given that the Williams appears to have lost competitiveness compared to last year.
“I think it’s a heads game, isn’t it?,” his team boss Jost Capito noted in Imola last weekend. “He’s capable to drive very fast and do the same lap times as Alex if he is in the right place, I’m sure.
“The cars are a bit more difficult and trickier to drive than last year’s, and he has to get his head around it. Of course, if you have a couple of offs you have to find again the confidence. But he will get the full support of the team, and we are sure he will get there.”
Latifi has struggled for confidence in the early rounds of the season
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