Williams has Not scored a single point this season and it doesn't look like much is going happen to change that any time soon.I will stick with my prediction team will not survive past another Decade
Your prediction seems a bit optimistic. The deck will be reshuffled next year when the specs change. If that doesn't give them a boost they're gone. Alas.
IMO this is classic example that you gotta know when to sell out. Frank has held on too long because he is senile and now the teams worth is dropping like a brick
It's only fun if your on the podiums especially given Williams history I would think it's depressing for the owner to see his cars at the back
Chacon son gout. There once was a man who worked at the circus shoveling elephant dung. Not surprisingly he complained constantly. When asked why he didn't quit he replied " what? And give up show business."
I think you've summed him up pretty darn well right there!..... He's now insanely wealthy. I'm pretty sure travels in his own jet with his medical staff and, most significantly, still *loves* what he does. He's about the only "true" racer left IMO; He started with nothing and poodled around at the back for years. He may not have officially gone tits up but I do know there were times suppliers had to wait. [I heard wages were sometimes a little sketchy too, but have no evidence.] Ron D is the same way, but a much more "dedicated" businessman. Everyone knows why their cars are always "MP4", right? "Mclaren Project Four" MP's 1,2 and 3 all failed for various reasons; Project Four was when he bought the team. Dunno who said it, (me? ), but you've got to fail in motorsport to appreciate success. Both Frank & Ron have been there, done that, and still came back for more. Why? Because it's in their DNA. They know nothing else and in Franks case, hope springs eternal. As it does in pretty much any race team, no matter how bad it looks now, *next* season!..... Hopefully Claire has "inherited" his passion as well as his money. Cheers, Ian
I'd be surprised if they are still up and running for 2017. I expect them to be sold off before then, but the name may still exist in some way shape or form (i.e. BMW Sauber after buying Sauber).
Don't forget Ferrari, they failed big time for over a decade (twice!) before bouncing back. And then there is the current "dry spell"
Very true. But, since the Old Man passed away they haven't had a singular driving force - They're a *team*, not one mans all consuming passion like Williams & Mclaren. Further, they'll always be Ferrari! Even when they sucked they remained the #1 "brand" in the sport. As has been said many times, "no Ferrari, no F1". It "hurts" when any team goes away (even HRT IMO! ) but only Ferrari is irreplaceable. Cheers, Ian
To mix tropes, Ron has gone over to the dark side hidden in his gleaming palace wringing his hands repeating "my precious, my precious".
Now there's something they should Toon.... "Featuring Ronnie D as Gollum!" (He does bare a remarkable likeness in some lights.... ) Cheers, Ian
There's more than a bit of Mr. Smithers in him too. And Max happily ensconced in is dungeon. " whip me, beat me, make me write bad regs!"
Sorry I said senile.Since his team has floated from the top down to bottom FAILURE would be more correct
Yes seems his F chat vacation has been a futile exercise... It's just as well I am, because I' am losing valuable minutes reading this Roll on Spain.....
Seriously why would any manufacturer get into F1 now ? Everyone is making big coin in F1 EXCEPT the manufacturers for whom the sport would not exist except for them. Bernie knows how to play them against each other so FOTA is just a pipe dream. Over half the revenue goes to outside investors who contribute nothing. The situation is ludicrous. Hence the Bernie subsidized Marussia etc teams just to fill the grid. PS Williams is guilty of selling out to Bernie and Co. for a few pieces of silver to axe FOTA. So is the Big Red Dog FYI. I have lost a lot of respect for Williams on this note but they have to do what they have to do.
From Autosport The Williams group recorded a loss of £5.0m in 2012, although a technical accounting treatment meant it was deprived of part of its Formula 1 revenues. The result compares to a £7.4m profit during 2011. Williams said that revenue of £9.4 million, received from the sport's commercial rights holder, had not been included in the results "because of the technical interpretation of today's accounting standards." Williams said its core business has seen turnover increase from £102.3m to £124.3m, meaning an increase in overall group turnover of 22 per cent to £127m, compared to £104.5 in 2011. "2012 saw Williams make encouraging progress on and off the track and we are determined to continue that upward trend in 2013," said team boss Frank Williams. "The win at the 2012 Spanish Grand Prix was a particular highlight and we continue to develop strong sponsorship partnerships and engineering relationships. At the end of the year Williams finished eighth in the constructors' championship. "There is still a way to go for the team to get to where we should be, but improvements on previous seasons are evident." The team is yet to score a point this season after a difficult start to the year.
Out of views again! So, I don't know if that's the complete story (it's also at Pitpass BTW) but to answer your Q; No, not at all! Reads to me that they're still profitable, albeit playing some fancy accounting games and turnover is up a nice 20+%. There's a lot of businesses would like to be in that position right now..... One little tidbit; Party Central? How do you lose £1.8m on turnover of £300k?!..... BTW, did anyone buy any shares? IIRC, a few were talking about it when they floated. It'd be interesting to see the full report. Cheers, Ian pitpass - Williams reveals 2012 financial results
