Latest F1 news on brief – Tuesday
-
Frank Williams Claire Williams says father will never retire
- Williams spent $3m on staff bonuses last year
- Rosberg 'didn't care' as he attacked in Bahrain
- Alonso 'knew' Ferrari would improve – Gracia
- F1 sponsors drivers in GP2, GP3 – report
- At what time of day should European races be staged?
Claire Williams says father will never retire
(GMM) Claire Williams says her legendary father will be "face down on the desk" on the day he retires from his role as team principal.
Claire, 38, is now the Grove team's deputy and undoubtedly first in line to succeed her father Sir Frank, who founded his racing team almost 50 years ago.
In the late 70s, Williams – now 73 and believed to be one of the world's oldest tetraplegics – founded his British-based F1 team alongside Patrick Head, who has since retired.
But Claire says her dad is not going to follow suit.
"Frank is TP (team principal)," she told the Guardian newspaper. "Always has been, always will be, until we find him one day face down on the desk."
Sir Frank spent some considerable time in hospital last year, but he is once again attending grands prix in 2015. But his travails in 2014 triggered speculation Claire is his obvious successor in the top job.
However, she says Frank remains as passionate today as he ever was.
"Frank is in there 24-7 — he's in the office more than any of us. He loves it, he's passionate about it.
"Frank is there, he always will be and he has no plans to retire," said Claire. "It wouldn't be the same without him."
 |
| Despite losing $50 million last year Claire Williams still gave out $3 million in bonuses |
Williams spent $3m on staff bonuses last year
(GMM) Williams spent $3 million on bonuses to its staff at the end of last year, British newspapers report.
The news follows hot on the heels of the Grove based team admitting on Monday it recorded a $50 million financial loss last year, as a result of lower sponsorship and official prize-money as well as higher costs.
But deputy boss Claire Williams insisted the figures should not be used to demonstrate either that the famous team or the sport in general is in trouble.
"These figures do not represent any wider malaise in the sport," she is quoted by the Daily Mail. "It is a product of our performance over the last decade. But we are not quaking in our boots."
Indeed, it is believed Williams' leap from ninth in the championship to third last year will increase official F1 prize money by a factor of 60 per cent for 2015.
It means that, despite the 2014 loss, Williams was able to pay a $4,500 bonus to each of its 660 staff members at the end of its return to form last year, according to the Times and Telegraph newspapers.
And Claire Williams insisted the team can continue to compete head-to-head with the likes of Ferrari, despite saying in Bahrain that the annual budget is dwarfed by a factor of three compared to the fabled Italian marque.
"It is not how much money you spend – Toyota spent 500 million (pounds) and never won a grand prix – but the shape and structure of your organization and how efficiently you operate," she said on Monday.
 |
| Rosberg aggressively passed Vettel in Bahrain |
Rosberg 'didn't care' as he attacked in Bahrain
(GMM) Nico Rosberg says he has changed tack after complaining about teammate Lewis Hamilton's driving in the recent Chinese grand prix.
The German had accused his Mercedes teammate of driving too slowly and compromising his strategy whilst leading the Shanghai race.
But a week later in Bahrain, Rosberg appeared to have changed tack by driving a notably aggressive race, including a daring move on Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel.
"It was very close, but I took a chance," said the 29-year-old, who also overtook Vettel in the championship standings after Bahrain and now stands 27 points behind only Hamilton.
Rosberg was referring to when he passed Vettel at the first corner, despite the fact that the sister silver car driven by Hamilton was not far ahead of the battle.
"I was not sure if Lewis was really far enough ahead of me, but this time I didn't care," Rosberg told Germany's Auto Bild.
Rosberg's more aggressive driving in Bahrain was hailed by Mercedes chiefs, amid the wider perception that he is the 'thinker' in the team versus Hamilton's killer instinct.
And, referring to his championship fight with Hamilton and his lauded racing in Bahrain, Rosberg insists: "Nothing is lost yet. Perhaps I just need to think less in the future."
 |
| After being replaced by Vettel at Ferrari, Alonso has to live with the struggling McLaren-Honda |
Alonso 'knew' Ferrari would improve – Gracia
(GMM) Fernando Alonso "knew" Ferrari would take a step forward in 2015.
That is the claim of Carlos Gracia, the head of Spain's motor racing federation.
"People keep saying Fernando was wrong to go to McLaren," he told the Spanish sports daily Marca ahead of the country's home grand prix next weekend.
Indeed, after five seasons of trying to win the title in red, 33-year-old Alonso left Ferrari at the end of last year to spearhead the new works McLaren-Honda project.
But he is now buried in the midfield, while Ferrari's resurgence has powered his successor Sebastian Vettel to title contention and the race win in Malaysia.
"Well," Gracia said, "I think Fernando would also have won races with that car.
"Just look at the performance of Kimi Raikkonen last year and then this year to see that it is the car that has improved, not the drivers.
"Fernando knew that Ferrari was going to improve a lot this year," Gracia insisted, "but his path was already made — due to many circumstances it was the end of a story."
But now, many observers say Alonso obviously made a mistake to leave Ferrari just as it put its slumped performance and turmoil in the past.
"I think differently," said Gracia, "(and) that Alonso instead initiated a new way to create inspiration among the fans."
Now, Alonso is predicting that McLaren will make a big step forward at his home race in Barcelona, now that the team and Honda is kicking off the start of the European season.
But, according to AS newspaper, he warned: "Let no one think that we will finish on the podium, but I hope that we will be better."
F1 sponsors drivers in GP2, GP3 – report
(GMM) The company that runs formula one sponsors key junior drivers in the feeder categories GP2 and GP3.
That is the finding of F1 business journalist Christian Sylt, having studied the prospectus of the sport's planned stock market floatation.
With colleague Kate Hewitt, he wrote in Forbes that the identity of the drivers who have benefitted is not known, but they are reportedly selected on the basis it may develop the sport "in key markets".
The prospectus states that "From time to time, we sponsor GP2 and GP3 drivers to encourage the development of the sport in key markets".
This year's GP2 season kicked off recently in Bahrain, including Indonesian race winner Rio Haryanto and American Alexander Rossi.
The GP3 championship, meanwhile, begins next weekend in Barcelona, with the field this year boasting Chinese Adderly Fong and Kuwaiti Zaid Ashkanani.
The prospectus states that F1 intends "to develop and foster, via GP2 and GP3, drivers from new countries, regions and markets who are capable of progressing to formula one".
"Since the presence of a national driver in the competition can be a significant catalyst for the sport's popularity in a given country, we expect this initiative to further drive local market popularity and awareness of formula one, underpinning and developing our fan base and the value of our commercial rights," it added.
 |
| Claire Williams |
At what time of day should European races be staged?
Claire Williams believes F1 should consider running European races later in the day in order to increase the sport's popularity.
Amid a long-running debate over how the F1 'show' can be improved, Bernie Ecclestone last month likened the sport to an "old house" that required constant repairing during a race weekend and he met with team bosses to discuss a series of radical rule ideas.
The future of the sport proved a central topic in Sky Sports F1's #AskCrofty show, when fans put their questions to leading figures in the paddock, including Williams' deputy team principal and Manor Marussia president Graeme Lowdon.
And responding to one question asking whether grands prix should be limited to one-hour in duration, Williams suggested F1 should first look at the time on a Sunday when races are taking place.
"You could cut the two-hour race [limit] to an hour, it doesn't necessarily mean it'll bring about change. I think it's more important when we're broadcasting our races," she said.
"The way that society is now people want to spend time with the family and doing something together, and actually giving up your whole Sunday, which you have to do to watch a Formula 1 race, completely clobbers your whole day.
"If we moved it to later on in the afternoon, you go out, you do your day with your family, you come home and watch the grand prix at 4pm or 5pm in the afternoon. Those kind of considerations are the questions to ask first."
The seven European races on the 2014 calendar, which take place between May and September, all currently begin at 1pm UK time. A number of grands prix in the Middle East and Asia have later local start times for the benefit of European TV audiences, with Bahrain, Singapore and Abu Dhabi running their events under floodlights in night-time/twilight conditions.
The worldwide expansion of F1 over the past 15 years has prompted numerous claims that the sport is forgetting its core fanbase. Six years after the French GP fell off the calendar, 2015 will mark the first time in half a century that the German GP hasn't taken place, while F1 supremo Ecclestone has also recently cast doubt on the future of the Italian GP at Monza beyond next season.
Williams believes F1 has been right to chase new markets, but says the sport shouldn't forget its past either.
"I think it's a little bit premature to say it's a worry," she said of the decrease in European races. "Losing Germany, which is one our core races, off the calendar is really disappointing and it's surprising as well.
"But Formula 1 is a global sport and Mr. Ecclestone has done a fantastic job taking us global, and that is a great thing for our sport. But you don't want to lose our European heartland and we've got to make sure we work hard and we keep those traditional races on the calendar."
Manor chief Lowdon agreed that it is vital the sport finds the right balance between old and new races.
"You can't imagine Formula 1 without the iconic tracks," he said. "There are two things here. One is the fans. There is a huge fan base in all the European countries.
"But there's also the fabric of Formula 1 and the history that does play a part. It's a balancing act that needs to be done, but it wouldn't be the same championship that's for sure."
Williams also wants to see the fans consulted on the future direction of F1.
"I think we need to ask what our fans want. It's something that as a sport we haven't really done. In Formula 1 we can live in our little bubble, but we need to go and do that piece of work to find out why they're not necessarily tuning in before we start fixing things," she insisted.
The start times for all 19 races in 2015:
Australia: 5am
Malaysia: 8am
China: 7am
Bahrain: 4pm
Spain: 1pm
Monaco: 1pm
Canada: 7pm
Austria: 1pm
Great Britain: 1pm
Hungary: 1pm
Belgium: 1pm
Italy: 1pm
Singapore: 1pm
Japan: 6am
Russia: 12pm
United States: 7pm
Mexico: 7pm
Brazil: 4pm
Abu Dhabi: 1pm