I think it's safe to say, Williams need some sort of paradigm shift. Yesterday they confirmed reports that as of next year they will run Mercedes Benz engines. Team Principle Sir Frank Williams released a statement yesterday:
“I’m delighted to announce our new association with Mercedes-Benz for the 2014 Formula One season and beyond. Mercedes-Benz has been one of the sport’s most successful engine suppliers and we believe that they will have an extremely competitive engine package. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Renault for their continued hard work since we renewed our engine partnership at the beginning of the 2012 season. We have enjoyed a strong relationship that has resulted in much success over the years, including powering us to winning ways once again last year at the Spanish Grand Prix,”
It really does give the impression of a match made in heaven. Mercedes Benz love to innovate driving and Williams are world renowned for technological and local innovation, but is this enough to bring back the good ol' days?
First of all, no. The current partnership with Renault only began last year, they made the switch from Cosworth and although it brought them a race win in 2012, afterwards everything went down hill from Pastor Maldonado going on an all out rampage against decent driving, and Bruno Senna displaying that he couldn't be quick on an empty track. In fact, with seven different engine manufacturers (Cosworth twice) since their last drivers and constructors championship's in 1997, history shows it'll take a little more.
Indeed, they definitely took steps forward this season by getting rid of that waste of space [Bruno] Senna by replacing him with the absolute prodigy, Valtteri Bottas. However something went horribly McLaren (or wrong) in the development of this year's car, the FW35. Maldonado called it a step backwards. Had they provided Bottas with a car of last years potential, big points could have been achieved, podium points.
All is not lost however. While an engine change is clearly not a race winning change, Williams already have the blocks for success. It's just a matter of putting them together.
The first step is looking towards next season. My Formula 1 has always placed strong emphasis on next season's formula change, and I believe Williams are playing a decoy here. Let's be blunt, the car this year is crap. It struggles for race pace and rarely exceeds Q1, it's almost like they haven't tried. There is a very good chance they are focused entirely on 2014's challenge, and I wouldn't blame them. Potentially we could see Caterham's (long shot, I know) getting big points next year, so count nothing out.
The next move that Williams should play is to do with their drivers, and I bet you're all thinking the same. Get Maldonado out. He's no worth to anyone. After the death of his country's leader, funding for Maldonado has been under threat from the new government, and since that's all he's there for, it's safe to say he wont have a drive next year.
In terms of Bottas, to start winning races or even performing consistently, that man needs high level Vettel/Alonso treatment. He needs to marked outright as team leader and number one driver. The young Flying Finn has multiple world championships in him, he needs the team to rally behind him. It would be stupid not to!
This year also saw Sir Frank appoint his successor (and daughter) Claire Williams to take over when he retires. A breath of fresh air like this could seriously lift the team to better heights. It could also see the push for Susie Wolff to become a full time driver. This might give women in F1 the push it finally needs. There are a lot of people opposed to having female F1 drivers, but the times are changing rather fast. Indycar seen four women race at the Indy500, and Danica Patrick is breaking records for female NASCAR drivers. As a market, F1 could look unappealing if it doesn't show it's a 21st century organisation.
Everything Williams need is right at their finger tips. While losing Toto Wolff to Mercedes is a big deal, it has bound to have played a part in securing a "long term" Mercedes engine deal. It's whether or not Williams can take a step back, look at the mess they are in, and say "right this is what's happening."
As a British-Irish F1 fan, it's sad to see Williams fail as they are doing. it's actually a joke. Enough is enough with the whole Maldonado thing, Claire should take over the running and Bottas needs to be given the support he deserves. A new engine deal is the first step, not a revolution. That will only come when big changes are made.
Yet another triple review for you today! The last three cars have finally been revealed, Williams have yet to officially launch their FW35, but at the test in Jerez they ran the 2012 car, only in the 2013 livery with some 2013 parts so they will get their own review at the end of the month when they launch on the 19th February.
The first test is well under way at Jerez, I'd like to take this opportunity to mention that I will be publishing a full review of the four days after the first test is over. Keep up to date on Twitter @Houston60 for more info!
W04
I covered the launch for Let's Talk F1, including a comprehensive review of the launch, my thoughts on the car and provided lots of photos of the Mercedes F1 W04. Click here to read it.
Feel free to check out the rest of the site and get in touch with us at @LetsTalkF1.
MR02
Marussia have came back from an okay 2012 campaign that saw them nearly get that very valuable 10th place in the constructors championship.
Right after their last race, they saw rookie Charles Pic leave them for Caterham and recently tsaw veteran Timo Glock depart for the DTM. Before Glock left, Marussia had confirmed the signing of GP2 ace Max Chilton and the line up was not fully completed until today when the team announced they had signed another GP2 name in Luiz Razia.
The MR02 essentially looks nearly the same as the previous model, maybe a design change but nothing clearly visable.
The car has adorned the optional vanity cover that is used to hide the ugly boxers nose of 2012 regulation changes. There is still a visible slope but it is nowhere near as bad as last season.
The technical aspects of the car remain the same although with the dissolution of HRT, they are now the only team on the grid to run the Cosworth engine. Throughout the year they may look for a better engine deal in order to prepare for the 2014 season where the sport undergoes a massive regulation change. I'll speak more about that at the end of this post.
What Marussia have done is introduced the KERS (kinetic energy recovery system) to their car, a first for the team. This will close the gap between them and fellow back runner team Caterham who were already equipped with the technology.
The team have all the mechanical components for success, but after allowing a driver like Timo Glock to slip through their fingers, they lack that experience. But I have faith in young Chilton and I believe that this is the season where they overtake Caterham in the pecking order.
CT03
Caterham have seen a reshuffle of members including two new drivers and a new team principle. Giedo Van der Garde completes the driver line up for this season.
First of all, the car looks FANTASTIC. I love the brighter shade of green and having always wanted to own a Caterham car, I am naturally drawn to the colours. Because of Tony Fernandes's departure from the game, the stupid soccer ball team logo is removed from the car. Soccer ball doesn't belong in a real sport like F1.
If you're not a regular reader (you should be it's great) you would have known that I made a prediction about the Caterham having the stepped nose and why. In my Mercedes W04 review, I stated that it might have something to do with the Renault engine. So far, all the Mercedes powered cars, all the Ferrari powered cars and the one Cosworth powered car have opted to cover up the stepped nose. Lotus's E21, Red Bull's RB9 and now Caterham's CT03 (all Renault powered cars) have all decided against using a vanity panel, citing performance over beauty. Is there maybe a cooling issue with the Renault engine or other components that deem a vanity panel unnecessary? Lotus cited a weight issue, but if the majority of teams have added it to their cars, surely it doesn't mean a thing? It's a disappointment to know that we're going to have a very stupid looking field next season, but what's worse is that if the panels mean lesser performance, the covers will all be dropped meaning one more season of the disastrous looking noses!
NOTE
"The technical aspects of the car remain the same although with the dissolution of HRT, they are now the only team on the grid to run the Cosworth engine. Throughout the year they may look for a better deal in order to prepare for the 2014 season where the sport undergoes a massive regulation change."
I recently purchased Jenson Button's book "A Championship Year" and I must say it is a fantastic read, loving every word. The reason why I brought it up is because of how he describes how the Brawn car was so successful in the opening races. In 2008, Honda stopped developing their current car because it was a lost cause, and also because there were big regulation changes coming in 2009. They started work straight away and financial issues aside, they (after become Brawn) developed a championship winning car for 2009. This is because they got ahead of the curve.
Why is this so important? What can be learned? If Caterham and Marussia both separately sat down and said to themselves; "let's do a Brawn" and started focusing their energy on 2014, they could seriously turn things around! I'm not saying they'll have a Brawn story or anything but if they just got over themselves and focused on the important issue, they could find themselves with a bit more respect next season and a status shift from back markers to a midfield team. Brawn done it on a budget, there is absolutely no excuse why these two can't. And who knows, maybe Scorpion Racing (HRT) may have already got the jump on us all. Food for thought right there.
"I just dread to think that a Motorsport lover will be replaced with somebody with money in their eyes" - My words from my blog on Norbert Haug's exit
I have to say, it doesn't take very much to confuse me but one of the biggest mind boggles I have ever come across is the world of business. So it's safe to say when the news about Toto Wolff apparently leaving his Williams post for Mercedes emerged, I scratched a hole in my head.
I'm not entirely sure about how confirmed it is, but my rule is if Autosport report it, it's probably right. To read their report, click here.
It was to my understanding that he was going to become Sir Frank Williams successor, a move which I believe would have ushered in a new era of success at the team but it's not likely to be.
The more and more I learn about him, the more and more I start to like him. If he takes up the role, he'll effectively be replacing Nobert Haug who left Mercedes via mutual consent in December 2012. If you have been reading my blog you'll recall I wrote a piece on Haug's departure. If not, click here to read it.
It seems as though my fear has come true. At the end of the day, Wolff's a business man at heart ironically owning shares in Haug's DTM. How much will this affect the racing? My prediction, a lot.
Mercedes seem to be building a monopoly of total dominance: Once Schumacher was out of the way they started reshuffling the pack. They get rid of Haug and replaced him with Wolff, that covered the business end of things. It's a widely known fact that Niki Lauda is associated with the team, this covers the face and voice of Mercedes as he's a well known and respected character (I personally am a Hunt man but that's another story). And of course the biggest aspect to me and to the fans is the racing. Who did the team get to cover that? A man who many consider the quickest and best in Formula 1 at this current time. Lewis Hamilton has the racing covered.
Mercedes certainly have a hand to go all in with, but my guess is we won't see it this year. I think they'll break everyone in to their roles and quietly develop the revolutionary new engine for the season after. Then they spring their trap and complete a power shift, and as a factory team they, along with Ferrari and Lotus (Renault previously but they still have the factory relationship) will become the real power houses in the game.
A new era is dawning and whatever anybodies opinion, there's no denying that Mercedes are certainly looking towards the future.
