Williams insist "family spirit" inside team must never die

Williams

Williams insist "family spirit" inside team must never die

Williams family stood aside after Italian GP last year

Ian Parkes & Ewan Gale

Thursday 18 February 2021 09:43 Updated: 11:38

Williams team principal Simon Roberts has insisted he wants the "family spirit" that the team was founded upon to remain existent into the future.

Roberts initially took temporary charge of the team in light of Sir Frank and Claire Williams stepping aside following the Italian Grand Prix last season, with the role made permanent just before the end of the campaign.

Despite the family aspect of the team departing, Roberts is keen to ensure the same morals and principals are instilled at the Grove base as the team gears up for a future with Dorilton Capital.

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“We desperately do not want to lose the family spirit that exists within the team," he told GPFans Global in an interview conducted late last year. "That is really important and you can feel that. “Hopefully when someone steps into Williams even in 20 years it will still feel a little bit like it always was so we don’t want to damage that.

“My style with the team is to tell it like it is. Nothing to hide and very straightforward. Problems are there to be fixed, issues are there to be fixed and successes are there to be shared and that is what we do.”

Roberts is entering his 19th season in F1 after working at both McLaren and Force India prior to his move to Williams.

The Englishman revealed he had learned to be as honest as possible during his time in the sport, something he will ensure continues whilst he is in charge.

When asked if he had learned from different team principals along the way, he replied: “They’re all different.

"One or two phoned me to share their advice with me which has actually been really nice so I appreciated that.

“I’ve learnt, not just in F1 but in all my life really, that I just want to be very transparent with people that work for me.

"The more we talk about stuff, the more we share ideas and issues, the easier it is to move forward and fix it and that is my approach here and that is what I plan to do."