Williams Remain Bullish after France

The team had gone into the race confident that a major aerodynamic revamp of their FW27 would help them move nearer the front of the grid - but it failed to pay dividends as Mark Webber and Nick Heidfeld failed to finish in the points.

To add further insult to injury, the team were on the receiving end of some fairly harsh comments from BMW motorsport director Mario Theissen who claimed the team's performance was 'weak' as he emphasised that the German car manufacturer's engines had run 'without problem.'

But although there are now doubts about whether BMW's engine is a match for the likes of Renault, Ferrari, Mercedes-Benz or Toyota, Williams' technical department are not getting distracted from making further changes to their car.

"We remain bullish," said a team spokesman. "Despite a disappointing performance in Magny-Cours on the release of the FW27's Mark II bodywork, the team will not be deflected from their aggressive approach towards their development programme.

"It's analogous to walking a tightrope without a safety net - sure, you might fall off, but you dust yourself down and get back on. It's a much better approach than doing nothing at all and one we are entirely comfortable with.

"The approach to take risks and push hard has characterised the team's mindset all year. The Mark II bodywork was the biggest single step in over 100 new aero releases to the FW27 so far this season."

Williams technical director Sam Michael is set to spend time at the factory this week trying to gauge just why the new aerodynamic package did not produce better results at Magny-Cours.

"We're confident that the Mark II bodywork will yield significant advantages but, clearly we will be working intensively this week to analyse what worked and what did not," added the spokesman.

"The team are approaching Silverstone realistically, but with full confidence and their appetite to take risks intact."