€13 Million in Crash Damage Leaves Williams F1 Team in Tatters for 2025

Saajan Jogia | 18 Hours Ago

James Vowles - Williams Racing / Williams Racing Press Image

Williams team principal James Vowles has highlighted the significant impact of 17 major crashes the team endured during the 2024 season, which will have lasting effects on its 2025 campaign. With repair costs running into the millions, Vowles expressed concern that the team may not be able to introduce new developments for next year, suggesting that the car's performance could be expected to remain at a similar level.

The Grove outfit finished ninth in the Constructors' Championship with 17 points, severely affected by a series of crashes throughout the season, resulting in a reported maximum crash damage of €13,839,600. While Logan Sargeant was responsible for several crashes in the first half of the year, his departure ahead of the Italian Grand Prix allowed F2 driver Franco Colapinto to step in. Colapinto impressed the paddock with his pace, earning points in four of his first five races.

However, the final five races of the 2024 season were particularly brutal for Williams, with the team suffering a retirement in every race and failing to score a single point. Alex Albon suffered a DNS in Brazil due to his car not being ready after a qualifying crash. Colapinto’s crash during the Grand Prix, along with another in Las Vegas Grand Prix qualifying, further compounded the team's struggles. Reflecting on the situation in 'The Vowles Verdict Abu Dhabi 2024', the Williams team principal said:

“It’s fair to say our cars have been quite battered and bruised over the last few Grands Prix.

“That has an impact on where we are ultimately performance-wise.

“Starting the year on the back foot in terms of parts cost us. Later on in the year with the amount of damage we had, which was extraordinary – 17 relatively major accidents – put us on the back foot in terms of parts.

“Very few teams, or no teams I should say, could cope with that amount of attrition and I’m really proud of what Williams achieved in pulling together in those tough, tough times to build the cars that we had.”

“The biggest impact on 2025 has been the amount of attrition, the amount of accidents we’ve had over these last Grands Prix.

“We’ve been managing it as best as possible, it’s fair to say we haven’t been building new and trying to keep back stock so we can try to maximise opportunities into 2025.”

Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz, set to join Williams next year, could play a key role in helping the team make crucial improvements with his feedback. After extensive discussions with Vowles, it appears Sainz is mentally prepared for a challenging 2025, understanding that significant performance gains from the car are unlikely. However, Williams is setting its sights on 2026, when the grid will reset with the introduction of a new era of regulations.