Williams are Still Contenders, Says Head

Williams are still serious Formula One contenders and people should be wary of writing them off, according to the team's technical director Patrick Head.

Head, in an interview with Britain's Autosport magazine on Thursday, also criticised individuals at engine partners BMW for "trying to rattle our cage in the press" after an unimpressive start to the season.

Williams have not won a race since March 2002, finishing on the podium just once this year when Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya came second in Australia.

They are currently level with Renault in third place on 35 points after six rounds, 29 behind leaders Ferrari. BMW, who believe they have the strongest engine, are impatient for results.

"There is an overall acknowledgement that we started the season at too low a level, but we've improved the car a lot since the beginning of the year and we are on quite a strong development slope," said Head.

"I am mildly disappointed in terms of individuals at BMW who think they can achieve anything through trying to rattle our cage in the press. It shows their limitations and it is a bit sad," he added.

"We don't consider ourselves out of the game and when I see people say it will be a three-way fight between McLaren, Ferrari and Renault it just makes me smile. I suspect we will be players pretty soon."

Head, a co-founder of the Championship-winning team with Frank Williams, owns a stake in the company and said he was not thinking about selling up.

"Basically, you either stop or you do it at 100 percent," he said. "And I am desperately unimpressed with not being at the front. There is no point banging my fist on the table, the only way you make something better is to work out what is wrong and put it right. I learnt that a long time ago."