Dave Robson doesn’t disagree with Max Verstappen when he stated that the Williams F1 car is not as bad people think it is, owing to current performances.
Since the F1 Hungarian GP, one of the biggest differences has been the form of Williams and particularly George Russell. Of course, it has since been announced that he is joining Mercedes for 2022, which has only added more promise.
In Hungary both Russell and Nicholas Latifi scored points. Russell’s performance and result at Belgium have been well documented and there was another strong performance in Sochi. These performances have been noticed by many people, not least Max Verstappen.
In the Dutchman’s opinion, the car has greatly improved and Russell is also an excellent driver. The shape of things to come perhaps. “George for sure he’s a very, very good driver,” said Verstappen to multiple media. “But when you can do these kinds of things, it also shows that the car isn’t that bad as people think.
“He’s scored points and had good qualifyings, and for sure, in Spa, that car is not a Red Bull or a Mercedes, but they also ran more wing and more downforce. So naturally, everything just starts to become a bit closer. Nevertheless, he still did an amazing job, but I think people have to understand that that Williams car isn’t as bad as people think it is.”
The car has improved greatly and had been improving since before Hungary too as Russell had been unlucky not to pick up points on other occasions. Williams Head of Vehicle Performance Robson also alludes to the fact the car has been improving, it also has its strengths and who knows what next season will bring.
He clarified about not adding any wing to the car, especially for the Sochi weekend. “I mean, yeah, the Williams car is a factor,” said Robson to media including FormulaRapida.net. “If it was really bad, then we wouldn’t be able to get those results. We haven’t added any wing to the car. So that is our best dry car put forward.
“I think what we do a good job of is getting on the right bit of the track at the right time, generally, with a bit of an exception in George’s case being Q1 in Russia. We do seem to be able to find some good grip from those intermediate tyres in those conditions. And in this case, the slicks as well at the end there.
“But I think that was all about just getting onto them early enough. The car has some strengths for sure, and certainly compared to last year’s car. It does have some strengths – it’s not terrible,” summed up Robson. Indeed it is not terrible.
Williams are heading in the right direction. It really is a pleasant change after some really trying times over the last few years. They are a long way away from the glory days and it’s a step by step approach but it’s good to see that the name is competitive once more.
The story is written by Neil Farrell
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