- So far, Dorilton Capital has smoothly taken over a much-loved team that for four decades was run by the Williams family.
- Entering year three, driver Nicholas Latifi has the tools to make the next step in his upward trajectory.
- New to the team, Alex Albon is out to remind everyone that he does indeed deserve a place on the Formula 1 grid.
Williams has taken the wraps off its FW44. While it is no longer Formula 1’s backmarker squad, the question begs as to can it continue its rise in 2022, or will it level off? The team finished eighth in the F1 Constructors' Championship in 2021.
Reasons to Be Optimistic
Williams’ mid-2020 takeover by new owners Dorilton Capital left the team slightly behind the field heading into a 2021 season that was always going to be transitional. But after years of juggling plates and dealing with increasing issues in its in box, Williams is under more stable ownership.
So far, Dorilton Capital has smoothly taken over a much-loved team that for four decades was run by the Williams family. It has retained the ethos and culture with which Williams is associated yet has undertaken much-needed changes to drag the team into the modern era. The Williams of the past has gone yet the Williams that fans love remains.
At its helm, Williams has a decisive and sharp-witted team principal in Jost Capito who knows a winning formula. Among a distinguished career in motorsport, he headed VW’s dominant WRC spell and is now tasked with rejuvenating Williams’ fortunes, having held a comprehensive review of its structure upon arrival in early 2021. That led to the recruitment of Francois-Xavier Demaison as technical director and Sven Smeets as sporting director, with further behind-the-scenes reshaping to bring a closer alignment to the trackside team and factory engineering, under the guidance of Demaison. That has facilitated a cultural reset that is still ongoing.
Operationally, Williams was significantly sharper in 2021. It has always been strong at pit stops, but strategically it captured most of the chances that came its way—most prominently the points bonanza in Hungary and shock George Russell-inspired runner-up finish and first-row start in Belgium. They were the standout moments, but there were other less-heralded moments which it grabbed thanks to strong teamwork, and that augurs well long term.
Entering year three, Nicholas Latifi has the tools to make the next step in his upward trajectory. while there is the opportunity for Alexander Albon to thrive outside of the pressured Red Bull environment. Albon is out to remind everyone that he does indeed deserve a place in Formula 1.
Albon did not succeed at Red Bull, but neither did predecessor Pierre Gasly (who has since thrived at AlphaTauri). Latifi and Albon were teammates in Formula 2 in 2018 and will form a harmonious partnership, which is a boon for a team still in recovery phase.
Long-term, keep an eye on Logan Sargeant, who is an American who joined Williams’ academy last October. He will tackle a full F2 campaign this year.
Reasons to Be Pessimistic
Williams is only at the start of a long-term journey back towards the front. It is title-less since 1997, and winless since 2012, meaning expectations must be tempered. It scored 20 of its 23 points last year in two chaotic races and had the ninth-fastest car for large swathes of the season. The team finished eighth in the Constructors' Standings, ahead of both Alfa Romeo and Haas.
Capito is putting together a team that will take time to gel after several years in the doldrums in which it was left behind by rivals that it once regarded as inferior. That rebuilding process is not the work of a few months. Substantial strides have been made since 2022, but there is more to do. It is only a minor blemish, but not having a mule car meant it missed the end-of-2021 tire test at Abu Dhabi—and it is expecting to start the season slightly on the backfoot as a consequence.
In the cockpit, it is not what Williams has that is a concern but what it does not. George Russell spearheaded Williams’ charge during its rocky spell and scored 16 of its 23 points last year. In Latifi and Albon, Williams has potentially the most amiable partnership in between two drivers in the team's history but not one that inspires confidence of a surge into the midfield.
Latifi, 26, is a sharper racer than qualifier but has to take a big stride, and find greater consistency, to enhance his credibility. Albon, 25, spent 2021 on the sidelines—and any driver returning from a year’s absence needs time to readjust and shake off the rust.
While Albon's Red Bull stint came way too early into his career (given he hadn’t even tested F1 machinery nine months before being promoted), it did show that he was not exactly a generational talent. Williams has two drivers who are eminently capable, but lack the star quality that Russell brought.
What to Expect
If Albon has long-term ambitions of returning to a front-running team, he must strive to replicate at least some of Russell’s achievements. Williams’ points total in 2021 was inflated by freak circumstances; it could step back this year, yet still be on the right path overall.
