How Williams' new leader forged his data-driven F1 ethos
Moving from long-time strategy director at Mercedes – a role that latterly included overseeing adjacent racing activities such as Formula E and the young driver programme – to become team principal at Williams was judged by many in the Formula 1 commentariat to be a bit of a leap for James Vowles. But not, as STUART CODLING reveals, to the self-proclaimed ‘highly competitive’ man who made it…
You probably knew the voice before you saw the face. Soft-edged but empowered by the weight of authority, and destined to lap the Formula 1 internet for all eternity: “Valtteri, it’s James…”
James Vowles joined what was then known as British American Racing in 2001 as an engineer,
one of the hundreds of F1 personnel the casual TV viewer might never see. He remained there through its several incarnations and built up its strategic facility from zero to a highly effective fighting force – but even then he remained relatively low-profile unless you were one of the select group of journalists invited by Mercedes to one of his fascinatingly detailed briefings.
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