Sam Michael predicts strong performance from Williams-Cosworth in 2011 Formula One season
The technical director of Williams-Cosworth, Sam Michael, is confident his team will have a strong season in 2011. However, he admitted that the team needed to develop quickly in order to win races.
Michael told reporters, “I think that all the testing that we have been doing shows that we have a very competitive car in the FW33 and as long as we develop it quickly, which is what we are doing, I think we'll have a good year.”
Williams hasn’t been able to win a race since the 2004 Brazilian GP. However, the team aims to be on the podium yet again with veteran driver Rubens Barrichello and debutant Pastor Maldonado.
Barrichello will be the team’s leading driver and will play a crucial part in the development of the Williams team throughout the 2011 season. However, Michael also praised the level of maturity shown by the 25-year-old Maldonado, who became the GP2 champion
in 2010.
The team was impressed by Maldonado during the test sessions at Valencia, Jerez and Barcelona. Michael appreciated the natural talent possessed by the rookie driver and said that he was learning very quickly.
However, there are some mistakes expected from the GP2 champion, as the pressure to perform in his maiden year will be too much for the youngster. Most Formula One teams have had mixed performances during pre-season testing. However, Michael said that it
would be too early to predict the level of competitiveness of any team at this stage.
He further added that the teams which looked good in the test sessions might not be competitive in the first race, which takes place in Australia on 27thMarch.
Williams didn’t have an ideal season in 2010. The team finished sixth overall in the constructor’s championship, but seemed to catch up with Mercedes GP halfway through the season. However, the German giants proved to be stronger in the last half of the
season, following some good performances from Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher.
The teams that ended up in mid-field last season would like to take their performance to the next level and challenge the front-runners. However, it will not be an easy task for them to improve their performance to such an extent.
Like last season, Red Bull, Ferrari and Mclaren-Mercedes are expected to be fighting for the championship in 2011. They might get some sort of competition from Mercedes, Williams and Lotus Renault. However, the latter three teams will be looking to outperform
each other, if not the front-runners.
The top six teams of 2010 have made a lot of claims about finishing on top next season. However, the picture will be clear after the first race, as all teams will bring in some more upgrades when the season officially starts.
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