Williams did his introspection in 2011
The Williams team experienced a difficult 2011 season, with key personnel changes during the season, but Adam Parr believes it was beneficial as the newcomers were able to identify the team's structural issues.
Mike Coughlan, technical director, and Mark Gillan, chief engineer, joined the Williams team mid-season to replace Sam Michael, who decided to leave after a disappointing year. The team based in Grove has been experiencing difficult times for several seasons as they are stuck in the midfield of Formula 1, and the leaders are aware of this; action was needed to change things.
«In reality, we have been in the middle of the plateau for several years already. You have nothing to do if you are walking in the middle of this perfect world, and I think that what happened to us is that we really didn’t see that our current level of performance was unacceptable, nor did we see the need for radical changes, » Parr told Autosport.
According to Adam Parr, one of the heads of the Williams team, the change of managers during the season was not easy to handle but it allowed the newcomers to see what was not working.
«That was very well said by Mark Gillan. Patrick (Head) told him, ‘I hope this season is over’ and Mark replied, ‘Everything we experience in situations is vital’. If Mark and the other new team members had arrived at the end of the year, they wouldn’t have seen all the underlying issues. They would have only seen the performance, but I think we all had the opportunity to really analyze the original problems.»
Adam Parr therefore believes that the difficulties encountered in 2011 will have been beneficial and this would allow the team to grow, improve, and bounce back. He thus expressed confidence in the ability of the Williams F1 team to bounce back in 2012.
«The good news is that sometimes in life you are not performing well, but you don’t know why. We precisely understand what our weaknesses are, where the opportunities lie, and what we need to do to change. The next question is, do we have the people and resources to implement such changes? And the answer is, (yes) absolutely, » added Parr.
Remains to be seen which drivers will attempt to restore Williams’ image in 2012 – Pastor Maldonado is expected to keep his place thanks to his sponsors and his strong performances in 2011. As for the identity of his teammate, it is still unknown.
