1 Racing Mind's 2017 Formula 1 Summer Break Report Card: Williams Martini Racing

Photo Credit: Glenn Dunbar/LAT Images

Team Grade: C

Driver Grades
Felipe Massa: B-
Lance Stroll: C+

Williams Martini Racing’s 2017 plans were thrown for a loop in only the first month of the year. Unable to resist the opportunity to take over the hotly desirable seat vacated by the retired Nico Rosberg at Mercedes AMG, Valtteri Bottas sought and was granted a release from the team. Brazilian Formula 1 veteran Felipe Massa, who originally intended to hang up his helmet after the 2016 season, was recalled to drive a Williams-Mercedes alongside 18-year-old Canadian rookie Lance Stroll.

The 40th anniversary season for the Williams Formula 1 team, 2017 has been short in celebration on the track. Felipe Massa started the season off reasonably with sixth place finishes at the Australian Grand Prix and Bahrain Grand Prix. While Massa has been a consistent for the organization with point-scoring finishes in 6 of the 11 races currently completed, Williams’ best effort of the 2017 Formula 1 season was obtained by the first year driver. Lance Stroll scored a third place result at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and was running in second place in the late part of the event before former Williams driver Valtteri Bottas. Stroll became the youngest Formula 1 driver to finish on the podium in Formula 1 competition and the first Canadian no named Villeneuve to achieve a three-top result in a grand prix.

While the podium sandwiched by two other point scoring finishes has been a respectable run for Lance Stroll, his rookie has been unstable overall. Stroll’s Formula 1 career started with three consecutive retirements consisting of a brake issue in Australia as well as two collisions in China and Bahrain.

In the first two years of Formula 1's implementation of the current gasoline/electric hybrid powertrain rules, Williams opting for Mercedes-Benz power was almost a winning decision existing as a podium threat for many 2014 and 2015 events. Since 2016, the team’s performance appears to have slipped. While the FW40 race car has rarely appeared in the top half of the point scoring spots, the Williams machines have been fairly reliable with several retirements being due to collisions rather than mechanical issues.

Thoughts of Team for Remainder of 2017:

The current Williams race car has shown much of its strength on slower tracks in 2017 leaving the Singapore Grand Prix as a potential opportunity looking forward through the final nine events.

While Felipe Massa has put in a steady effort with Williams with the exception of his withdraw from the Hungarian Grand Prix due to health reasons, Lance Stroll’s performance has areas requiring growth. Stroll’s qualifying results in the first 11 events have been most atrocious. Cracking Q3 on only two occasions, Stroll’s Williams-Mercedes has most often been seen mired back in last three rows of the grid. Better starting spots would inevitably help the Canadian find point-scoring consistency through the remaining portion of 2017.

Williams Martini Racing Signs Canadian Lance Stroll as Development Driver

Photo Credit: Williams Martini Racing

The last time the Canadian flag was flown by a driver in Formula 1 was in 2006 when Jacques Villeneuve drove for the BMW team. Though there has been no shortage of talented Canadians attracting the attention in Europe such as Bruno Spengler and Robert Wickens, the latest leading hopeful for seeing the maple flag flown in the top open wheel racing series currently rests in Lance Stroll. A young driving prospect from a well-off family (the latter being an important component for access to Formula 1) Stroll has spent the past few years in a transition from karting to smaller open wheel development series. Supported by the Ferrari Driver Academy in recent years, 17-year-old Lance Stroll is now under the umbrella of Williams Martini Racing heading into 2016.  

Lance Stroll’s addition to the Williams Martini Racing’s Young Driver Development Program was announced on November 26th. "I’m really honoured to be part of such a great team and one with so much history and success. I cannot wait to start working with Williams and very much hope we can achieve great things together in the coming years.” said Stroll adding how reaching Formula 1 is a top career goal. Willams Martini Racing’s Deputy Team Principal Claire Williams commented on their new development driver saying, "We have identified Lance as a promising talent for the future and we are happy to provide our support to his development as a driver. We look forward to working with Lance in 2016 and to the success he can achieve in the future."

Graduating from Italian F4 as the champion in 2014, the 2015 saw Stroll involved in the wild and competitive FIA F3 European Championship for Prema Powerteam. The turbulent rookie year for the 17-year-old Canadian in F3 has been marked with some bumps in the road. Enduring a wild crash at Monza that was ruled his fault, Stroll would eventually claim victory in Race #1 at the Hockenheimring. Concluding the 2015 season by scoring 6 podium spots, Stroll has already pledged a return to Prema Powerteam for the 2016 FIA F3 European Championship. Also racing for M2 Competition in New Zealand in 2015, Stroll captured the Toyota Racing Series crown. Realizing his career is still a young one, he believes the resources provided by the Williams Martini Racing Young Driver Development Program could best serve him in his progression up the motorsport ladder.  

Leaving the Ferrari Driver Academy in favour of Williams Martini Racing’s program, the move comes after questions regarding his former development program circulated in late August. There had been rumours earlier this year suggesting Scuderia Ferrari was considering cuts to their Driver Academy. This speculation was strongly denied by Ferrari team boss Maurizio Arrivabene.

Stroll’s move to Williams Martini Racing is not without some historical reflection. The Williams Formula 1 team also recruited Canadian Jacques Villeneuve from IndyCar for the 1996 on route to a 1997 championship. Time will determine if Lance Stroll will be a future pilot with the nine-time championship-winning constructor.

1 Racing Mind 2015 Formula 1 Mid-season Report Card: Williams Martini Racing

Photo Credit: FOTO STUDIO COLOMBO X PIRELLI

Williams Martini Racing

 

Team Score: C

 

Felipe Massa: C+

Valtteri Bottas: B

The Williams Martini Racing's 2014 season was seen as a very positive year. Making the right move by choosing the Mercedes-Benz power unit last season, the team has enjoyed near-equal pace with the factory Mercedes AMG organization. Williams Martini Racing's effort biggest success was a pole for the 2014 Austrian Grand Prix. With many expecting a race victory for the team in 2014, 2015 has featured high hopes for Williams. Though a productive Formula 1 campaign in the first 10 races this season, it may not be unfair to say some were looking for bigger things from the Williams-Mercedes race cars in 2015. 

There seemed to be no fault in the decision to preserve the driver line-up after the 2014 season. Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas performed well last season and have continued to be consistent for 2015. Both Massa and Bottas have appeared on the podium with a third place finish Unfortunately, the 2015 Williams-Mercedes race car appeared is lacking the front-running pace that was presented with the 2014 vehicle.

Similar to last year, the Williams Martini Racing team's progression back to the victory lane has shown periods of weakness. Slow, handling-focused circuits such as Monaco and the Hungaroring concluded with no points being scored by either race car. In the British Grand Prix, Williams driver Massa snatched the lead from the Mercedes AMG race cars in the early stages but faded to fourth. In the second scenario, race conditions contributed to result but the finish left many within the team disappointed. Bad luck for the Williams Martini Racing also occurred at the opening round in Australia when Valtteri Bottas suffered a back injury that sidelined him for the round.

Still showing potential, the Williams-Mercedes has shown reliability and Felipe Massa has finished in the top-10 for all but two races this season. Last year by the tenth race, Massa had three DNFs. Despite missing a race, the young Bottas continues to impress currently in fourth place in the overall points standing. As a team, Williams is holding steady in third-place in the manufacturers' points.

Ingredients for Second-Half of 2015:

Last year, Williams Martini Racing's season enjoyed a very productive second-half of the schedule that resulted in six of nine podiums for 2014. With the strong Mercedes-Benz hybrid power unit and a Williams engineers that can provide a quick, well-engineered vehicle, there could be still be potential for the team to steal a win in 2015 figuring a little fortune finds the team.