Formula 1: Williams drivers have still beaten 0 non-Williams drivers all year

Through the first three races of the 2019 Formula 1 season, no Williams drivers have finished ahead of any non-Williams drivers.

After ROKiT Williams Racing teammates George Russell, a rookie, and Robert Kubica qualified in 19th and 20th place for the 2019 Formula 1 season opener, the Australian Grand Prix, and then went on to finish in 16th and 17th, respectively, ahead of only the three drivers who were forced to retire, it looked like a realistic possibility that a Williams driver would not beat any Williams drivers all season long.

This is still a realistic possibility.

Of the 17 drivers who finished this race, six finished on the lead lap and another nine finished one lap off the lead lap. Russell, meanwhile, finished two laps off the lead lap and Kubica finished three laps off the lead lap.

Rich Energy Haas’ Romain Grosjean, Renault’s Daniel Ricciardo and McLaren’s Carlos Sainz Jr. were forced to retire from this race with a wheel issue, damage and an engine issue, respectively.

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For the season’s second race, the Bahrain Grand Prix, Russell and Kubica qualified in 19th and 20th place, respectively, once again. Of the 16 drivers who finished the race, 11 finished on the lead lap. Russell was the lowest finisher of the four drivers who finished one lap off the lead lap in 15th while Kubica was the lone driver who finished two laps off the lead lap in 16th.

Renault teammates Nico Hulkenberg and Ricciardo were forced to retire with mechanical issues while Sainz Jr. was forced to retire with a gearbox issue and Grosjean was forced to retire with damage.

Russell and Kubica ended up qualifying in 17th and 18th place, respectively for the season’s third race, the Chinese Grand Prix, but only because Alfa Romeo Racing rookie Antonio Giovinazzi did not make a qualifying attempt due to mechanical issues and Scuderia Toro Rosso rookie Alexander Albon crashed in the third and final practice session, preventing him from doing so.

McLaren rookie Lando Norris and Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat were both forced to retire from the race with damage while Hulkenberg was forced to retire with a mechanical issue. Meanwhile, both Giovinazzi and Albon made their way past the Williams teammates.

Of the 17 drivers who finished this race, six finished on the lead lap and another nine finished one lap off the lead lap. Meanwhile, Russell and Kubica both finished two laps off the lead lap in 16th and 17th place, respectively.

It would be untrue to say that the Williams teammates have not spent several laps ahead of non-Williams drivers so far this season. But this has only ever taken place due to the fact that these other drivers have been involved in some kind of incident, and these drivers often end up being forced to retire anyway, and if they aren’t, they still manage to finish well ahead of the Grove-based team’s two drivers.

Will a Williams driver finish ahead of any non-Williams driver before the 21-race 2019 Formula 1 season comes to an end? Even with 18 races remaining on this year’s schedule, the chances of this happening are not likely.