Williams Racing has announced that the team’s drivers, as well as its director, James Vowles, will take part in the traditional Goodwood Festival of Speed, which will be held this year from July 11 to 14. They are joined for the first time by Leah Block, who represents Williams in the F1 Academy Women’s Series.
Alex Albon and Logan Sargent will drive the historic FW08 car in which Keke Rosberg won Williams’ second championship in its history. But as is clear from the team’s press release, both Vowles and Block will be behind the wheel of the 1982 model for the first time. By the way, the ground effect was already used in Formula 1 at the time, just like in the technology of the current generation.
The car was powered by a 3-liter Ford Cosworth DFV V8 engine, but the aerodynamics of the FW08 chassis were so efficient that Rosberg competed on equal terms with representatives of teams that had already switched to more efficient and powerful turbo engines.
Although Rosberg only managed one victory, winning the Swiss Grand Prix at the French Dijon circuit, he finished on the podium five more times and regularly finished in the top five, scoring 5 points more for the season than Didier Pironi and John Watson (they had an equal number of reward points).
Alex piloted the FW08 at Goodwood last year and for Logan this will be his debut at the famous Festival of Speed. The drivers will also have to hold several meetings with fans. James Vowles has been in charge of Williams since last year and before that, as chief strategist for Mercedes F1, he occasionally took part in GT races – most recently in the 2022 Asian Le Mans Series. He drove a McLaren 720S GT3 sports car at the time. .
James Vowles: “We are preparing to take part in the Goodwood Festival of Speed and share our passion for motorsport with fans around the world. This festival is a unique event that gives us the opportunity to showcase the rich historical heritage of Williams Racing. And I will be able to realize my dream: I will get behind the wheel of a Williams championship car!”
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
