The jubilation and sorrow Williams experienced in its 2021 F1 recovery

It was a season of highs and lows for the famous British team in 2021, from sealing a hard-earned eighth in the championship to the loss of founder Sir Frank Williams. Team boss Jost Capito explains the emotional rollercoaster Williams experienced on the road to recovery

Luke Smith Dec 22, 2021, 11:38 AM

Upd: Dec 22, 2021, 2:28 PM

“If you need to compromise my race to help Nicky, do it. Prioritise Nicky.”

The radio message from George Russell after the early-race chaos in August’s Hungarian Grand Prix was a sign of the breakthrough moment he knew was within Williams’s grasp.

Nicholas Latifi sat a heady third following a red flag for the Turn 1 crashes and some tyre mix-ups off the restart. Russell had also battled into the points, but knew the bigger chance lay ahead for his Canadian team-mate. While both would go on to score points in Hungary, acting as the latest major step in Williams’s revival and reconstruction, there were more ups – and downs – to come as it finally ditched its ‘basement team’ tag after three difficult years.

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Author Luke Smith

Luke Smith is Autosport’s Formula 1 reporter. Luke has been working in F1 as a journalist since 2013, initially alongside a History degree at University College London. Luke served as the lead F1 writer at American broadcaster NBC Sports from 2013-17 before spending two years as the F1 Editor for Crash.net. Luke joined Autosport for the 2020 season.

Luke is also a contributor to The New York Times for its F1 special reports, and has previously worked with Al Jazeera and CNBC, as well as hosting FIA press conferences. Outside of F1, Luke is a fan of sports and music, with an ever-growing vinyl collection, and has being bitten by the running bug in recent years. He also runs a surprisingly popular blog reviewing the often-terrible media centre coffee from his F1 travels.