Monday 18 August 2014

Williams Martini Racing Team Belgian Grand Prix Preview

(Williams Martini Racing Team)

The Williams Martini Racing Team head into the second half of the 2014 Formula One season starting with this weekend's Belgian Grand Prix at the Spa Francorchamps circuit off the back of their strongest start to a Formula One season in recent years.

Heading into the Summer break following the Hungarian Grand Prix the Grove based outfit lie in fourth place in the Constructors championship just seven points behind Ferrari. Williams have scored points in every Grand Prix so far this season and head into the second half of the season as one of the most consistent teams of the 2014 season having done a fantastic job with their new Mercedes power unit and packaging the FW36.

The team admit that they have wasted a number of golden opportunities to take a victory this season particularly at the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring where the they locked out the front row with Felipe Massa starting from pole position with Valtteri Bottas alongside him. In that race the thy went on to finish the race in third for Bottas and fourth for Massa.

However Formula One is about looking at the future and not dwelling on the past. The team head to Belgium where their chief technical officer Pat Symonds believes the team can challenge Mercedes for the victory due to the fact that the circuit has a very high top speed and long straights which he believes will suit the characteristics of the FW36. Symonds also feels that the team can mount a victory challenge at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza in September.

The team are currently achieving the goal set out by deputy team principal Claire Williams at the start of the season which was to score points in every race of the season. The outfit are currently 37 points ahead of Sahara Force India in the Constructors championship. Speaking ahead of this weekend's race Head of Performance Engineering Rob Smedley said:

'We have had a really good start to the 2014 campaign, everyone is living and learning how to race back at the top again. Hopefully everybody has come back refreshed and motivated for the second half of the season. The objectives within the team are clear, we want to finish as high up in the constructors table as possible. 

Spa is a circuit that should suit us, there is very high drag and engine sensitivity and those features will benefit us. The middle sector is something we will have to work on throughout the weekend, and in qualifying we will need to have the tyres switched on for that sector. There is always a chance for rain in Spa, so we have to be conscious of this throughout the weekend.'

Valtteri Bottas is looking forward to this weekend's race commenting:

'Spa is always a great place to go; it’s one of the best circuits in the world. The elevation changes and high speed corners make it a real pleasure to drive, especially in an F1 car. Because of the long straights and variable weather conditions races can be very interesting for the driver and for the fans. To becompetitive in Spa you need a car with efficient aerodynamics, so we expect to be strong and are aiming for a good result. The break has been long so I am really looking forward to getting back in the car.'

Felipe Massa is also really looking forward to race. The Brazilian said:

'I love Spa, it’s one of my favourite tracks because of the long straights and high speed corners, and it’s a track we all look forward to racing at.The long straights should suit our car and we can kick the second half of the season off with some success. I won here in 2008 and so I know what it takes to win. I have had a really nice summer break but am ready to get back to racing. We have some great tracks to look forward to and I hope we can carry on developing our car like we did the first half of the season, and continue to be near the front.'

© Ben Johnston 2014

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