F1 team introductions: this year’s goal for Williams couldn’t be clearer – bounce back from last place!

The winter break is coming to an end and we are just days away from the start of the 74th Formula 1 World Championship. In the third part of our series of articles on F1 teams for this year, we look at the Williams team. Last year, a stable with a rich history in the queen of motorsport finished last in the Constructors’ Cup. So for a team with a new boss and a partly new driver line-up, there can be no other goals for this year than to move away from the tails of the charts!

Williams in 2022

Formula 1 entered a brand new era last season, one that was characterised by drastic changes in the technical regulations. A glance at the history of the sport reveals that many times one or more teams have managed to leap up the field at the start of these eras, whether it was a clever interpretation of the new rules or a tie-up with a successful partner.

Williams was secretly hoping to build on the 2014 edition, which saw the introduction of hybrid six-cylinder engines to F1. The traditional stable switched from Renault engines to Mercedes engines and the results were immediately apparent. The lower midfield team suddenly became a team fighting for race wins at times.

Williams jumped from ninth place in 2013 to third overall in the space of a year. Gradually, however, the stable began to lose competitiveness. Unfortunately, it has finished the season in last place four times in the last five seasons.

The coveted performance comeback didn’t happen last year, and the Williams driver line-up of Alexander Albon and Nicholas Latifi recorded three ninth-place finishes and two tenths. With an overall score of eight points, they lost a comparatively abysmal 27 points to ninth-placed AlphaTauri.

Returner Albon did not impress but did not disappoint, while Latifi continued his poor performance. It was the last straw for the team and they terminated the contract of the 2021 Abu Dhabi VC sinner.

American driver’s return to F1

The United States is playing an increasing role in F1. Bigger and bigger audiences there, more races. Joining the mix from this season is Logan Sargeant, who will become the first US driver since 2015. The fourth man in the overall F2 standings last season earned his place with outstanding performances, particularly at Silverstone and the Red Bull Ring. There, he drove to victory in the main race on both occasions.

Sargeant will take on the more experienced Albon, whose involvement with Williams last year seemed to suit him at first glance, especially given his previous experience at Red Bull. Although his results may not seem too solid, the Thai driver objectively swept Latifi, who bid F1 goodbye after three seasons with the team.

Characteristics of the monopost

Williams unveiled its car on February 6 at Silverstone. According to Mark Hughes’ analysis on the official F1 website, Williams is following the trend set by Red Bull last year, which has been adopted by several other teams’ designs this year.

What can be seen on the FW45 are changes to the side skirts and radiator layout. The front of the side skirts are slimmer compared to last year’s car. With this change, Williams moves the centre of the air intakes to the floor a little further back, which in theory means a more stable rear end and therefore a stronger car when cornering.

Similar to the look of this year’s Mercedes, for example, Williams has adapted the solution of moving the radiators further back. This is evidenced by the protruding tubes on the sides of the engine cover. The purpose of this innovation, in addition to the aforementioned increase in space under the side skirts, is to increase the level of cooling to the rear of the car.

Motorsport Server also described the changes to the front wing, which it also compared to the solutions applied by Haas and AlphaTauri last season.

New boss and sponsor

Williams F1 team owner Dorilton Capital, which has been running the stable since 2020 when the Williams family left it for good, has reached into the highest spheres and decided to replace former Mercedes head of strategy James Vowles as team boss Jost Capito.

Gradually, however, Vowles became the man at Mercedes who was instrumental in the overall run of the team, which won eight consecutive constructors’ titles with his help. That experience should be very helpful to Williams on his way to at least midfield.

Williams also announced during the unveiling of his car that he is working with several new partners, including oil company Gulf, which has become the team’s new sponsor.

Conclusion

“Philosophically, this is an evolution, ” described Dave Robson, head of vehicle performance at Willaims FW45. In light of this comment, it cannot be assumed that the stable’s performance will deviate from last season’s norm.

Still, a new concept, a new boss and a partly new driver line-up gives fans of this historic team hope for a better tomorrow. After all, in the case of Williams, one cannot go too much deeper, at least considering last year’s overall result. So if any team has the perfect opportunity to challenge for the higher ranks this year, it’s Williams.

F1, Motorsport