James Vowles wants to steer Williams in a new direction in 2024 and is counting on the help of Pat Fry, who recently joined as technical director
Williams team principal James Vowles believes the arrival of Pat Fry as technical director will help the team “completely change direction” in 2024 – even if Fry has actually joined too late to have a drastic impact on next season’s car
The British engineer took up his position at Williams on November 1 after leaving a similar role at Alpine earlier this year. There he was a key figure in overhauling the team after years of underinvestment.
At Williams, Fry, who has also worked for Benetton, Ferrari and McLaren, has the task of identifying what each technical department at Grove needs for long-term success. Nevertheless, Vowles believes the new arrival will soon prove valuable – especially in the team’s realignment.
“I joined this year at a point where we could still influence the car. But next year is really about thinking about how we can completely change direction,” says Vowles, who himself has only been Team Principal at Williams since the beginning of 2023.
“I’m really looking forward to seeing how that develops in four or five months’ time. I also have Pat by my side now. He knows how to do it. He’s very revered, you can ask anyone. You have a good man in Pat.”
“We’re not going to change the chassis any more, but with the direction we’re going in, there are still things we can tune before we get to Bahrain.” The official and only tests before the start of the new Formula 1 season will take place there from February 23 to 25.
Alex Albon, who has scored 27 of Williams’ 28 world championship points this year, also says he is pleased to have someone with Fry’s experience and expertise on board.
“He’s only just joined the team, but I think he’s learning the ropes very quickly,” said Albon. “I think he also understands the areas where we need to improve and will be an advisor and mentor to the team, so I’m delighted to have him with us.”
Williams finished seventh in the Constructors’ Championship in 2023 after the team stopped development of its car early, but managed to fend off a late threat from a resurgent AlphaTauri team. Albon hopes that this approach will pay off in 2024.
“We’ve sacrificed a lot this year to focus on next year’s car,” he says. “That can only be a good thing. We did what we needed to do to get to P7 and now we’re turning our attention to next year.”
The Williams driver believes the conditions for good progress are in place. “Of course it will be helpful to have Pat on board, and for James it will be the first real year where he has a real leadership role in the development of the car, so we’ll see what happens,” summarizes Albon.
