IMO within a decade Williams will not exist as a team (Sad scenario)
Sad but this is a good example were a business does not realize the changing world around them. They should have sold out to BMW when they were worth something
I give it 2 years max. At the very least they will be bought. Can't see them surviving as an independent team. Sad to see their decline.
I would not be surprised if they call it quits at the end of this season...or at least Sir Frank will take on a lesser role given the recent passing of his wife. It's going to be a tough year ahead for Williams with the team and car seemingly in quite a shamble at the moment. Doesn't help that loldonado still can't seem to grasp the value of consistency over outright pace either. I mean how many times does the guy need to put the car into a wall or DNF?
It will be a sad day when they cease to exist as an independent team but.....I can understand Franks reasoning because I am hard headed aswell. I find it admirable he has stuck to his beliefs/guns yet find it rather saddening those beliefs will be the demise of a great and historic team. Atleast when Pastor went off this weekend he did not take someone else with him.
I think they will be bought but still exist. F1 owes a lot to Frank... the little used car dealer who could dream big.
If the name Williams lives on I will be happy. I think heritage is very important in any aspect of life and business and when that is lost I believe alot of "personal association" is lost aswell and support is diminished. I would like to hear Gerhards impression of this potential "changing of the guards" as we all know he and Frank share a bond that can never be erased.
I'm not so sure of Williams getting bought out. Lotus are looking for a partner and not finding one None of the the big manufacturers are interested in entering F1 because the field is already crowded with Ferrari,Red Bull,Merc and McLaren. Plus Toyota spending a Billion and accomplishing nothing is also a fact that will deter most from entering F1
If Williams F1 does survive, I hope it is more like McLaren and not like Lotus. They need to exist as an actual team and not just as a brand name.
That would be good for Sir Williams, but maybe not for the team, just look at what happened with BMW Sauber. There´s still hope for Williams, IMO. They were worse two or three years ago.
I don't think the Williams brand means hardly any thing. Too many years have lapsed since they won WDC (1997) They do not have star drivers only pay drivers No one buys their Hats and tees.The have virtually zero licensing value to their name
Williams is becoming the sort of fading team Tyrrell was at the end. A team with plenty of history, but unable to keep up in the big league. Now that Patrick Head has stepped down, Williams has also lost some essential management players. It doesn't attract big sponsors, nor top drivers lately. The situation is unlikely to change. I don't know if someone still need to buy an existing team to enter F1. Maybe Williams will find a rich party interested in buying the team for marketing exposure, like Jaguar found Red Bull. Yes, Frank Williams should have taken the offer of Mario Thyssen and sold his team to BMW at the time.
Crack open an F1 history book please... They are as much a team as when they were Tolemen, Benetton, Lotus Renault and the original Lotus F1 Team. Only difference today is the carmaker Lotus has withdrawn as its title sponsor/owner.
F1 teams come and go, apart from Ferrari. Who remember Pacific? Onyx? Wolf? Theodore? Belasi? Zakspeed? ATS 1 and ATS 2? The ones I miss are BRM, Cooper and Brabham. Probably because I followed Gps intensely at that time. F1 was easier to understand then.
I remember 5 of them. Two fo the three made engines. None of the 'also rans' is currently doing so. And several of the front runners aren't either.
They are indeed a team, a team that should be called Genii GP or Genii F1 Team. Now it is just a mockery of what the name Lotus once stood for in motor racing. You may be okay with that, but I do not share your point of view. And if you think that Lotus cars is not trying to benefit from today's Lotus F1 Team, you might want to think again. You are aware that the race winning "Lotus" E21 was wearing the same Anthony Colin Bruce Chapman initialed logo on its nose, right ? Don't miss understand me tho, I think the team is doing great, just would have rather see the name Lotus RIP instead of just being a sponsor to a race team.
It's a benefit to both parties imo. The F1 team still carries on his legacy in good light...lets not forget Chapman was one of the first entrants in F1 to turn the cars into rolling billboards most famously, the John Player Special. The car today still pays homage to that livery. I'm sure the Lotus name and race heritage is also probably an easier sell to get more viable sponsors for the F1 team which ensures its continued success and longevity in F1, which is undeniably a great thing for the Lotus name. Win-win imo...it's not like they're butchering the Lotus name. Maybe when the car making side of the name gets their shiet together they can come back to F1 and beyond just title sponsors.
Williams budget is still many tens of millions a year, and last I heard, Frank was still one of the highest paid team bosses. It seems the best shot they have is partnering with some other teams... I am not sure there is really a lot of interest in F1 teams for sale at the moment, so perhaps Frank is waiting for the economy to improve and hoping to sell out.
+1 They're in much better shape than they where when the team first died. Who cares what's it called in the end. I'm just happy they have the best livery and Kimi is doing well!
