Spanish GP: Williams Racing Grand Prix Preview

With almost the first six races of the 2020 FIA Formula One World Championship in the book, we return to
familiar ground this weekend as the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya plays host to the Spanish Grand Prix. The track has a good mix of high and low speed corners and is a circuit very familiar to both George and Nicholas, who have spent huge amounts of time pounding around it during winter testing. This weekend, the FW43 will carry the Israel Start-Up logo for the duration of the weekend as the team’s Official Test Driver, Roy Nissany will take part in his first FP1 outing of the season.

Dave Robson, Senior Race Engineer:
To complete the second triple-header of the season, we return to Barcelona and a circuit that all the teams know very well. We were here in February for winter testing but returning for a race in August is a very different prospect. Pirelli have brought their hardest tyre compounds – as we raced a fortnight ago at the first of the Silverstone races – and our first priority will be to understand them in the hot summer conditions.

Roy Nissany will drive George’s car during FP1 at this event. We spent time with Roy in Abu Dhabi at the end of last year and we know that he will immediately be up to speed and contributing to the important test plan on Friday. We continue to push the FW43 hard and this return to Barcelona is an opportunity to explore again the higher downforce set-ups at a circuit that we know well.

The back-to-back races place a heavy strain on all those who travel, but we are grateful for the opportunity to be in Barcelona competing in another round of the 2020 Formula One Championship. We are conscious of the coronavirus situation in the city and we wish the region a speedy return to normality. We look forward to returning and being able to enjoy the Spanish hospitality soon.

Nicholas Latifi:
I am looking forward to the last race of the second triple-header as I feel that I have consistently been making gains race on race. I am looking forward to trying to put everything together on the Saturday. I think Barcelona will be a nice track to solidify and see the performance of the car relative to our direct competitors. It is a track that is a benchmark for Formula One as it has a bit of everything, and I am confident we will go well there.

George Russell:
Off the back of two very different Grands Prix at Silverstone, one being cold with hard tyres and one being hot with soft tyres, I think that has given us some good learning. This week in Barcelona is going to be really tricky as we normally race there in May, now we are racing there in August. However, I am excited to get back driving again and hopefully put in another good Saturday, but this time focus on doing the same job on Sunday.

Roy Nissany:
I am very keen to get in the car in Barcelona. Driving an FP1 for the first time is a huge milestone for every driver, yet for me, it is also a national achievement to be carrying the Israeli flag. I have thoroughly been preparing for it with the team and I believe we can get great value out of it.