Williams team boss outlines 'number one' pressing concern ahead of F1 season opener in Bahrain

New Williams F1 team principal James Vowles has confirmed that hiring a new technical director is their 'number one' prerogative heading into the 2023 F1 season.

Vowles was Mercedes' Chief Strategist from 2010 to 2022 before moving to the Grove-based team to replace Jost Capito at the start of the year. Capito's exit coincided with the departure of technical director F. X. Demaison, who was in charge of overseeing the team's ground-effect development at the start of 2021.

Vowles is now keen to fill the void left by Demaison and bring more structure to the team. Speaking at a press conference during F1 pre-season testing in Bahrain, the Briton said:

"I think the primary thing is this – We don’t have the structure in place technically, obviously, as a result of the changes that were made. Number one is let’s put in place a proper set of structures, in terms of a technical director and a head of aero – that’s number one because clearly an organisation needs those to move forward."

Vowles added that he wants to make this move with the long-term future of Williams in mind and will not decide in haste. He said:

"There’s a strong organisation in place, and it’s acting without a TD (Technical Director) as we speak – there’s a car on track, it’s built – who did an incredible job over the winter to achieve that.

"What’s clear is this is not about short-term putting someone in place, this is about long-term and making sure we have the right person in place. We’re not going to rush to a decision. The key is making sure we find the person that fits the organisation for the long term."

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James Vowles wants Williams to have the same winning mentality as Mercedes, according to Alex Albon

Williams boss James Vowles wants his team to have the same winning mentality as his former employer, Mercedes, according to driver Alex Albon.

Albon believes Vowles' experience at Mercedes can help Williams improve this season. While speaking to the media at the launch event of the team's livery for 2023, he said:

"He motivates all of us to listen to him and to understand why Mercedes do certain things and the reasons for it. He said the team wants to have that winning mentality that Mercedes have used. It’s a little bit tricky just because of this being almost peak month for [us] getting ready for the next year."

The Thai-British driver went on to add:

"James (Vowles) coming on board now, with his experience with Mercedes, hopefully, that can obviously pull things forward and increase the evolution of the car.

"You can very much tell with James that he’s had a lot of experience in all areas of the company at Mercedes, so hopefully, we can put that to good use. You can see that he’s very keen, he’s motivated to get the team to where he knows the team can be. It’s exciting."

Albon and F1 debutant Logan Sargeant will be hoping that Vowles' expertise will help lift Williams from the bottom of the grid and into proper midfield contention in 2023.