Jost Capito blames old regime for Williams failure

Williams

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Capito blames old regime for Williams failure

Capito departed earlier this month after a poor season

Ian Parkes

Tuesday 20 December 2022 15:50

Former Williams CEO and team principal Jost Capito has blamed the team's failings in the first year of F1's new regulatory era on its former regime.

Capito took over at the helm in 2021, succeeding Simon Roberts who in turn had taken charge when Dorilton Capital acquired the team from the Williams family.

The change in ownership had provided hope of improved fortunes when the new regulations were introduced, but instead, Williams took a notable step backward.

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Despite all three drivers that drove the FW44 scoring points, the team scored only eight n total, 27 of ninth-placed AlphaTauri at the foot of the table.

In comparison, Williams' rivals from 2021, Alfa Romeo and Haas, took significant steps forwards to become established in the midfield.

Asked why Williams had not taken full advantage, Capito, who recently left his role along with technical director FX Demaison, told GPFans: “Through the processes we had, with the way Williams worked in the past, we were not capable of doing this.

“But we also have seen that other teams started much earlier, working on the new regulations and at least developing concepts.

“At Williams, before Dorilton, that was impossible. So I think we lost concept time on the new regulations as well.”

Detailing the processes that were lacking, Capito added: “There was not a proper ERP [enterprise resource planning] system to run the factory. There was no project management.

“It was very much based on experience with employees but when the company grows so big then you need proper processes in place.

“So we established these kinds of processes and also there have been silos in the past so we had to bring the teams closer together.

“This is working now much better but it needs a culture change but the culture change takes time. This is not done in one year.

“We are not yet where we have to be but I think we are moving in the right direction.”

Additional reporting by Ewan Gale