In 2004, the stakes will be high for the BMW WilliamsF1 Team. Having come so close to success in 2003, there is only one achievement that will satisfy in 2004 - outright victory in the Formula One World Championship. In 2003, the team’s achievements were notable, but insufficient to claim to be the very best. After a difficult start to the season, the team headed the World Championship, but conceded defeat in the final race of the year.
Necessarily, then, the BMW WilliamsF1 Team has high ambitions for 2004. The starting point for the team’s ambitions is to be a competitive force from the very first race with the new WilliamsF1 BMW FW26 chassis and the new BMW P84 engine. While the car will be all new, the team has stability in the capabilities of Juan Pablo Montoya and Ralf Schumacher, backed up by the test and reserve driver Marc Gené.
Team Principal Frank Williams commented, “We have acknowledged our shortcomings of 2003. In 2004, we must be competitive from the off if we are to realise our potential. I have every confidence that the team has all the elements necessary to win in 2004 - we must simply seize the opportunity.”
Patrick Head, Technical Director of WilliamsF1, supplemented these sentiments, “We are acutely aware of the need to be challenging in every race - from Melbourne right through to Brazil in 2004. I am reassured that we have left no stone unturned at WilliamsF1 in our preparation for next season.”
BMW Motorsport Director Mario Theissen continues, “We have to master complex tasks in order to achieve our goal of the World Championship title. The Sporting Code introduced in 2004 prescribes the use of a single engine for the entire Grand Prix weekend. This means that endurance is our priority. However, we also want to field the most powerful engine on the grid despite the new rules.”
The WilliamsF1 BMW FW26 design represents another step change, in fact the second in as many seasons. This process is challenging and more demanding than iterating an already successful design, but the results, as 2003 proved, provide a compelling reason for taking this course with car development. Under the guidance of Chief Designer Gavin Fisher, the radical design will be immediately apparent when the FW26 first breaks cover.
The FW26 features a distinctively short nose cone, with the the front wing main plane and associated assemblies mounted on extended 'tusks'. The startling interpretation of the front profile has been conceived in tandem with a twin keel monocoque design, aiding air flow both under and over the front geometries of the car, and improving global aerodynamics right through to the rear wing of the FW26. The front profiles of the car are augmented by a narrower sidepod footprint, enabled by revised cooling packaging, all assisting aerodynamic performance. This afternoon, Ralf and Juan Pablo will have the chance to complete some maiden laps in their new car.
