F1 News: Williams Chief Sends Sly Jab To AlphaTauri After Nyck de Vries' Shock 2023 Exit
In an assessment of Formula 1's rookie development, Williams team principal James Vowles has raised concerns over AlphaTauri's handling of Nyck de Vries' mid-season replacement with Daniel Ricciardo. Vowles' comments highlight the significant challenges faced by newcomers to the sport, emphasising the need for ample time to adapt.
Key Takeaways:
- AlphaTauri's Swift Driver Change: Vowles brought into question AlphaTauri's decision to replace Nyck de Vries, who had a challenging start with no points, with Daniel Ricciardo. Despite Ricciardo's injury and absence for several races in 2023, he remains with the team for the upcoming season.
- Backing Williams' Rookie, Logan Sargeant: In contrast to AlphaTauri's rapid driver changes, Vowles showed continued support for Williams' rookie Logan Sargeant, who also faced a tough year but earned a point.
- Highlighting the F1 Learning Curve: Vowles emphasised the significant transition from lower motorsport series to Formula 1, noting the extensive learning and adaptation required for rookies to perform at their peak in F1.
James Vowles, while speaking to KTM Summer Grill, expressed his thoughts on the development of rookies in Formula 1. His comments come in the wake of AlphaTauri's decision to replace Nyck de Vries with Daniel Ricciardo partway through the 2023 season. Vowles contrasted this with his approach at Williams, where he supported rookie Logan Sargeant despite a challenging year.
Vowles stated:
“I would say any rookie this year – there were sort of three starting the year and two finishing the year – one not perhaps given their full potential within the season, because it is tough.
"In the old days, I don't know how to describe old days, five years ago, six years ago, what we used to do is do about 30,000km of testing with a driver before you'd even consider putting them in the race car.
"They need enough [time] that they can explore the boundaries and limits of it because the step from any other motorsport series and this one is enormous."
He further discussed the gap in performance between F1 and other series such as Formula 2 and IndyCar, highlighting the challenges new drivers face in F1, especially in managing the car at high speeds and optimising tyre performance. Vowles continued:
"To put numbers on it, F2 and even IndyCar for that matter would be about 14 seconds behind on a lap time. So you're in a different ballpark to what you're experiencing here.
"And it takes the drivers time to extract everything out of the tyres... You're trying to get all four tyres within a few degrees of their optimum temperature. The window is only about four or five degrees.
"You're trying to manhandle a car at 300km/h around a circuit and it's just a different world and it takes quite a while. Someone described it to me as it's driving a racing car, but now at warp speed.
"Everything happens so much faster. And it takes a long time for you to get used to finding those limits."
