When Alex Albon claimed a point for Williams in the opening race of the season in Bahrain it raised many a smile, whether among its hard-pressed staff, patient fans, or those of us who have followed the great British team’s trials and tribulations. For new team boss James Vowles, less than two weeks into the job, it showed the potential which lies within the FW45, which in testing lapped 2.4s quicker than its predecessor almost straight out of the box.
Meanwhile former team boss Jost Capito posted a congratulatory note on LinkedIn, somewhat pointedly thanking former technical director FX Demaison and the departing aerodynamics director David Wheater for all their hard work on the new car during 2022.
It is 20 years since Williams last mounted a championship challenge worthy of the name, 26 years since the team last won a world championship title.
The decline has been painful to watch. With 16 world championship titles under its belt, the team founded and led by Frank Williams and Patrick Head has struggled to recapture past glories.
One symptom of the fall was the team opting to change engine suppliers no fewer than six times in 10 years. After the relationship with BMW soured in 2005, Williams moved to
