F1 News: Williams Technical Officer Calls Out Heavy Delay In 2024 Preparation

Pat Fry termed the 2024 season preparation "massively late" and less cost-effective.

Williams Chief Technical Officer Pat Fry, who joined the team midway through the previous season, criticized the team's readiness for the 2024 season, citing significant delays in assembling parts for the FW46. Expressing concern, Fry emphasized the team's tardiness in preparing for the car's track debut, a situation he hopes to avoid in the upcoming season.

Key Takeaways:

• Williams' Chief Technical Officer Pat Fry criticized the team's delayed preparations for the 2024 season, citing significant delays in assembling parts for the FW46.
• Team principal James Vowles explained that they intentionally skipped the shakedown at Silverstone for the new 2024 car to focus on a virtual track test, pushing the car's limits.
• The team faced challenges on the opening day of pre-season testing in Bahrain due to a delayed shakedown, with a fuel pick-up issue in the morning and a driveshaft problem in the afternoon. Fry highlighted the impact of delayed preparations on the team's efficiency and cost under the new regulations.

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Team principal James Vowles explained that the decision to skip the shakedown at Silverstone for their new 2024 car was intentional, as they were "pushing everything to the limits" with the car. He preferred allocating the time to a virtual track test instead of a physical run at a 'wet' Silverstone before heading to Bahrain.

Consequently, the Grove-based team arrived in Bahrain and conducted the shakedown session a day before pre-season testing commenced. However, the team faced challenges on the opening day due to a fuel pick-up issue in the morning and a driveshaft problem in the afternoon. 

Fry disclosed another version of the story that the team's preparations for the 2024 season were delayed, with parts coming together "massively late" for the FW46. This lateness impacted their ability to conduct the shakedown earlier, contributing to challenges on the first day of testing.

Speaking to Motorsport.com about the delay, he said:

“The way we go about making a car is quite different, I would say, from what I would call normal.

“And it’s not very efficient.

“Everything is massively late. [It’s not as] if you’re leaving things late for a reason, and I’m used to having lots of stuff early that’s not performant, and the floor as late as possible, because that’s your biggest aero thing. And in a cost cap, you’re only going to make one, and the one at the test is the one at the race.

“But we just had everything [late]. I’ve never seen anything like it. Don’t want to live it again. I’m sure James doesn’t want to live it again either!

“It hurts you in a number of ways because compared to what I’m used to, we’ve issued all the aero surfaces quite early, yet still are struggling to get them out, because everything is there in that massive bow wave, like a huge mountain of parts that we need to make.

“And then as well, it’s not very cost cap efficient. So we end up hurting ourselves there as well. So I think all that is down to – it’s just the way we go about it, the culture we have.

“And we’ve got to think more wisely about optimising all three sets of regulations. You’ve got to optimise the financial side now as well. It’s just viciously expensive, what we managed to do. So best to avoid it again.”

“Never again, I hope,” he added. “Hopefully I’m not here next year saying the same thing!”

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