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Patrick Head of the Williams team has suggested today that reverse grids might be a good way to spice up the races, putting the fastest driver in qualifying at the back and the slowest at the front. This would mean the duration of the race is made up of the fastest driver trying to negotiate his way to the front, creating more opportunities for the illusive overtaking maneuvers and generally adding to the excitement of a grand prix. However, I don’t think Patrick Head has fully thought this through yet. Continue Reading

After running with some celebratory liveries during the testing season, Williams today finally unveiled their finished design which will see the team through the 2008 season. In recent years the livery has reverted to a retro-blue look and has looked quite pleasing to the eye. Well, in my eyes anyway. And this year’s attempt looks to be very nice, reducing the white and concentrating on the dark blue. Hamleys, the London-based toy store, also announced today they have extended their sponsorship deal with the team. They joined the squad in 2004. Continue Reading

Patrick Head, co-owner of the Williams Formula One team, has explained to the media just how close his team came to signing Lewis Hamilton in 2004. It has always been suggested that Lewis was intrinsically close to Ron Dennis and the McLaren team from an early age, but it turns out that father and manager Anthony Hamilton had a falling out with McLaren three years ago and instigated a meeting with Frank Williams and Patrick Head. It appears that BMW were the spoiler at the party, refusing to fund Lewis’s racing obligations before promoting him to the F1 team, all this despite Frank’s glowing assessment of the youngsters talent. Continue Reading

Number three in the retrospective series centres around a team close to my heart. It was the team that caught my attention back in the mid-nineties, so emphatically doted upon by the legendary commentator Murray Walker. Of course, the team is Williams. They haven’t won much in quite a while, and each year I seem to end my preview posts with a conservative not this year, but maybe next. But they still capture my imagination, even if it does then get a little carried away. Continue Reading

Williams haven’t won a drivers or constructors championship since 1997. Their last win came in Brazil at the end of the 2004 campaign. As the team start their eleventh season of championship drought, the fourth year of victory drought, a lot of hope is being echoed around the grandstands and online forums that this year will see some better performances. Team owners Frank Williams and Patrick Head must surely wondering when the rain of champagne will fall their way again? However, celebrating 30 years in Formula One as well as a few other landmark statistics being met this season, maybe a bit of luck will land on the plucky privateer’s laps. And like the team’s many thousands of fans the world over, I’m hoping the FW30 will be one of great progress and improvement, pushing the team further towards the top on the road to recovery. Continue Reading

As Clive was so keen to point out earlier, Kazuki Nakajima has topped the timing sheets on the third and final day of testing at Barcelona’s Circuit de Catalunya. Nakajima, a driver of only one race so far, set a time of 1m22.153s and beat not only his more experienced team mate Nico Rosberg, but also the Ferraris and McLarens. Both previous days of testing had been a wash out, but the Williams duo had looked quite strong this week with Rosberg topping out on the first day. However, on a finally dry track and with more teams running, Nakajima popped in a time when it mattered. Which according to Clive, shows his real pace and why many fans might be a little surprised by his form this upcoming season. Continue Reading

Day one of the Barcelona test wound up earlier with wet weather interrupting many of the runs and hindering progress for the teams present. Currently, only Williams, Toyota, Red Bull and Renault are setting times with Super Aguri shelving plans to join their rivals earlier in the week. Rosberg comfortably went to the top of the timing sheet, setting a 1m30.675s, just shy of two seconds quicker than team mate Kazuki Nakajima. Continue Reading

Williams have abandoned their test programme at Barcelona this weekend and are heading back to Grove a day early following the problems that have arisen with their front wing. On the first day of the test Kazuki Nakajima suffered a mounting failure on the wing and ploughed off the circuit at high speed. The team immediately suspended Nico Rosberg from running until they had figured out exactly what the problem was. This morning the team ran both cars having repaired Nakajima’s chassis by flying parts out to Spain on Frank Williams’s private jet. However, the squad aren’t entirely convinced the issue has been resolved are instead returning to the factory to prepare for the Jerez test next week. Continue Reading

Testing got underway again today at Spain’s Circuit de Catalunya, but the session was stopped just short of 11.30am local time when Kazuki Nakajima speared off the track and into the barrier. The incident happened at the circuits first corner, and according to reports it seems as though his Williams FW30 just went straight on, over the asphalt run-off area and into the barrier on the outside of the corner. Kazuki was able to get himself out of the damaged car unaided and appears to be unhurt. The accident happened at the tracks fastest point; his Williams would have been travelling at about 180-190mph as he approached the braking zone, although the actual impact speed is not known at the moment. Continue Reading

This post was inspired by Quofda, a new site set up by the 9rules crew where they ask a question each day and bloggers answer on their own sites. I had considered answering today’s question on my personal site but quickly realised just how relevant it is to Formula One, and reminded me of one of my sadder memories of the sport. The link to the question is just below, along with my answer. So without further ado, here goes… Continue Reading