Williams lost 20 million pounds in six months
The changes made in its organization have had a significant impact on Williams' income statement, which recorded a loss of 20 million pounds for the first six months of the year for its F1 activity.
Everything has changed over the past twelve months at Williams: the team parted ways with Renault and Pastor Maldonado to bring in Mercedes and Felipe Massa. But most importantly, they have returned to the podium with Valtteri Bottas and have already scored 150 points, whereas they had to settle for just five unfortunate units throughout the entire 2013 season.
However, the departure of the Venezuelan had a significant impact on the team’s revenue since PDVSA is one of the biggest sponsors in the paddock. To allow Pastor Maldonado to move to another team, despite a contract binding them for 2014, the public company had to pay a substantial amount to Williams, which positively impacted the figures of the previous fiscal year.
Mike O’Driscoll, the CEO of the Group, stated: « At the beginning of the second half of last season, we embarked on an ambitious strategy to rebuild the Formula One organization, develop a solid Advanced Engineering division, and exit non-essential operations. We have already made substantial progress towards our goals. This strategy required significant investments, as shown in our mid-year results, and it will impact the full-year results. »
However, this year’s results should have a definite impact on the finances of 2015 as £14 million are promised to the team that finishes 4th in the Constructors’ Championship. This amount could even increase by the end of the season as Williams is only ten points behind Ferrari before the Monza race. Similarly, the team’s commercial department has managed to attract a new title sponsor, with Martini.
From our special correspondent in Monza
