Monaco a Turning Point, Says Williams

German Nick Heidfeld finished second ahead of teammate Mark Webber in third - the best results of their respective careers - to provide a timely boost to the Williams team after a poor start to the season.

"The Monaco Grand Prix was a real turning point for the team," Williams told the team website.

"After the serious disappointments of the last three races, Monaco proved that we still have the fundamental ability to be very competitive and, in due course, with a faster car, we will be in a position to win."

Williams have not won since Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya's season-ending victory in Brazil last October.

The result in Monaco could not have come at a better time with speculation continuing that BMW, fed up with Williams's lack of success, were looking to buy the Sauber team.

BMW on Tuesday declined to comment on a newspaper report that said the German car manufacturer was considering a 150 million euro ($188.6 million) bid for the Swiss-owned team.

The team have also reiterated that driver error was not behind Webber's poor start in Monaco - the Australian dropping from third on the grid to fifth at the first corner.

"We had a clutch problem and we acknowledge that," team technical director Sam Michael said on Wednesday. "We take responsibility as a team for it ... we're working hard to try to fix that.

"Mark drove fantastically well.

"In Monaco, so many things can go wrong, but he didn't put a foot wrong."

Both drivers benefited from the team's quick thinking after the safety car was deployed on the street circuit and Webber believes it may be more difficult to be competitive at the European Grand Prix this weekend.

"At the Nurburgring, more things are needed to be competitive there," he said. "It's definitely given us some confidence, but by the first lap at the Nurburgring, Monaco will be forgotten."

Webber is fourth in the drivers' standings, 31 points behind Spain's Championship leader Fernando Alonso and a point ahead of Heidfeld in fifth.