Frank Williams says Adam Parr is natural successor as team boss

Although Williams has no intention of stepping down from the team principal role that he has held since he formed the outfit, he says Parr has impressed him enough to be viewed as the right man to step into the senior position when he eventually moves aside.

"If for whatever reason I couldn't come in to do my job, Adam would fill the gap," said Williams in an exclusive interview with this month's F1 Racing magazine.

"He's a young man and physically fit like I was at his age. He's not a racer but, in a way, that's probably an advantage in these distinctly commercial days. He's very good at making financial decisions and working out cost-to-benefit. And he can hold his own in the Formula 1 meetings."

Williams believes Parr has added great strengths to the team, having arrived in 2006 as chief executive officer and then stepped up to the role of chairman in 2010.

"Adam is a very good man: utterly honest; hard-working; very efficient and with great marketing acumen," added Williams.

"All I would say is that Adam is a very clever individual with a strong sense of business. He's a lawyer by training - he's got a lot going for him."

Reflecting on last year's disappointing campaign, which was the team's worst in its history, Williams knows exactly where his team's car was lacking.

"I'm not an engineer but I've seen lots of good cars and lots of bad cars - and ours wasn't quick enough," he added. "Why wasn't it quick enough? It was deficient in most of the areas that matter. But we were completely lacking in the most important one of all - which is aero. And probably a bit of horsepower.

"It just wasn't a quick car. And I don't think it carried much ballast. Some of our clever brethren created an enormous amount of ballast - which is a great performance benefit."