WilliamsF1 not for sale

By Andrew Hooper
May 22 2003


	WilliamsF1 not for sale

	WilliamsF1 team head Sir Frank Williams has made it very clear that the sale of any part of the WilliamsF1 team to BMW, in order to achieve an extension of BMW's engine supply contract, is not an option. WilliamsF1 said: "It's not about equity and it's not a question of surrendering, it's about success." It has been reported extensively that talks between BMW and WilliamsF1 have taken far longer than expected, with reports ranging from BMW were to supply engines to Sauber through to it was a fifty fifty chance that BMW would stay with Williamsf1. One view put forward as to why the talks had stalled was that BMW is looking for changes at WilliamsF1 covering the management and staffing structures. This is one aspect that the WilliamsF1 team do not look favourably at. How long this tension can go on is unknown but it is not good for the relationship between BMW and the WilliamsF1 team. Such events as the report that said a picture of a tortoise was seen on the wall of one of the BMW trucks. It was said to represent the latest FW25 in testing. Such events do little to smooth this tension. Even Patrick Head has commented on individuals at BMW trying to rattle the WilliamsF1 teams cage. It would be fairly close to the truth if one said that these remarks were aimed at Gerhard Berger who seems to have gone out of his way of late to criticise the WilliamsF1 team in his recent comments. It would seem that there is developing a viewpoint at BMW that their engines are the best in Formula One and that if there is a problem it originates from the WilliamsF1 team and not from BMW. Such was the case when Juan Pablo Montoya's engine failed in Austria. Those at BMW were quick to point out that the part that failed was separate from the engine, causing the engine to lose water and eventually fail. Given that there is still over a year and a half of their contract left to run such tension between the parties is hard to understand and should really be put to an end.