F1 News
Claire Williams: "I always found that quite deeply frustrating"
- GPblog.com
Before Williams was actually sold, the legendary team enjoyed interest from several parties. Eventually, they chose Dorilton Capital, who took over during the 2020 season. After the Monza Grand Prix, the Williams family stepped aside as control went straight to the investment company. A difficult moment for Claire Williams and her father, but in the end the best for the team.
Deep pockets
In an extensive interview with The New York Times, former team boss Claire Williams looks back on the turbulent period and the sale of the team, or company, to the investment company mentioned. Of course, the choice for Dorilton is also discussed and it turns out to be quite simple: a lot of money.
Claire Williams literally says: "They’ve got deep pockets. I was fed up with the team, and all the people in it, scrabbling around not being able to do their job properly because we didn’t have the money to allow them to do it. For many years, I always found that quite deeply frustrating and upsetting. I knew Dorliton were willing to put money into the team in order to take the team back to the front of the grid. I could sense a real passion to do that, very similar to our family’s passion."
Keeping the name
That passion is also reflected in Claire Williams' handling of the team's name. At the time of the sale, the former team principal said it was not necessary to keep the 'Williams' name. With a new name, the new owners could start with a clean slate, yet they kept the Williams name.
In retrospect, she is very grateful for this. She concludes: "They had a huge amount of respect for the heritage and the legacy of Williams, a huge respect for what my dad’s achieved, and they didn’t want to rip that up. They wanted to build around that, and why they wanted to keep the name is important to me. I just felt that they were the right fit for Williams and for the people."