Home

F1

Major Boost for Williams F1 as Team Gets One More Lifeline to Save Operations

Published 04/10/2020, 9:10 AM EDT

Follow Us

Williams F1 has secured a loan following the sale of one of its engineering branches. The Grove outfit sold its Williams advanced engineering branch back in 2019. The team made the sale in a bid to secure a means of refinancing. Deputy team principal Claire Williams confirmed the sale of the engineering wing and said the team had secured a loan.

Williams obtain refinancing following the sale of WAE

It’s no secret that the Grove-based outfit is in financial trouble. A lack of results on track coupled with a lack of funds had made life difficult for the British team in F1. The team has relied on sponsorship money or other forms of payment to keep going.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

When Williams announced Lance Stroll, several fans accused the team of signing a pay driver. Stroll is a good driver but having a billionaire father as a financier doesn’t hurt. Following Stroll’s departure, the team signed Robert Kubica. The pole hadn’t competed in F1 for over 7 years but his backing from a large oil corporation definitely boosted his chances at a seat.

Trending

Get instantly notified of the hottest F1 stories via Google! Click on Follow Us and Tap the Blue Star.

Follow Us

Nicholas Latifi replaced Kubica and he too brings in a great deal of sponsorship money. Latifi’s father happens to be the founder of a large foods corporation and unsurprisingly sponsors the team. Allegedly, Williams’ financial source also includes Michael Latifi’s( Nicholas’ father) Latrus Racing. Speaking to Motorsport.com, Claire Williams opened up on Williams’ refinancing.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

Following the sale of WAE at the end of 2019 we began a refinancing process”

“After considering a number of options, we have now concluded our refinancing with a consortium of lenders, all of which was negotiated on an arms-length commercial basis. The loan package provides us with the resources that we need moving forward,” said Claire.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

Williams Advanced Engineering was the technological and Engineering wing of the Grove-based outfit. The company was involved in battery development, renewable energy and research in the areas relating to automotive, aerospace, civil and much more.

The British team had one of its worst seasons in Formula 1 year. Williams scored only a single point in 2019 and finished plumb last in the Constructors’ Standings. The team may have secured a means to keep going for the foreseeable future but needs results to sustain itself for the long term.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE :

Written by:

Abhishek Bharadwaj

720Articles

One take at a time

Abhishek Bharadwaj is an F1 author and content strategist at EssentiallySports. Having joined ES in January 2020, he has over 700 articles to his name. While he was first introduced to the world of F1 in 2006, he started religiously following the sport in 2012 and has had an undying passion for it ever since.
Show More>