Jost Capito: Williams has failed to meet expectations for 2022

Despite optimism for the new era of F1, Williams find themselves languishing at the back and failing to meet the expectations Jost Capito had set

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Williams boss Jost Capito has admitted the team has failed to meet expectations for the 2022 Formula 1 season with it sitting bottom of the championship.

Speaking in an exclusive interview for Motor Sport, the team principal said, “We are not where we wanted to be, and we didn’t achieve the objectives we set for the car.”

After 13 races, Williams has only scored three points despite optimism for 2022 with the new era of F1 technical regulations.

The team hoped to build on its eighth-place finish in the 2021 championship, which featured a podium and was the first time in four years that it finished off the bottom of the standings.

Grove’s expectations for this season was to be fighting towards the top of the midfield. It has in fact digressed, and in order to get to where Williams wants to be, it has become apparent it needs a revamped management structure.

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Only Alex Albon has scored for Williams this season, with the team 17 points off Aston Martin, who are next to bottom

“If we would have achieved our expectations, when we do that simulation, we would be in the upper midfield.

“And so it seems the objectives were right. We just didn’t have the processes yet in place to achieve these objectives, but we believe we know why we didn’t achieve them.

“And we’re doing steps now, for example establishing a proper project management system that was not in place before, getting more disciplined in the whole development process, and doing some restructuring to become more efficient.”

From the archive

After joining the team for the 2021 season, Capito admits life at Williams has been harder than he anticipated.

Although he knew he was joining a team which had been struggling for numerous years, Capito didn’t realise just how much that had affected his staff.

“It took a while to find out what really has to be changed, where the team actually is,” he said.

“Being for four years at the very back, it has had an impact on the culture; it has an impact on the team mentality.

“And it kills a bit of the fighting spirit, because you’re not really competing. I think I would say I underestimated that.”

It’ll require patience to change the culture of the team but no matter what happens, Capito is set on making sure it does not lose the heritage of Williams and its original roots.

“Frank is still highly respected, and Claire as well, and they are still on the pictures on the walls,” he added.

“The feeling about the family, about Frank, is not gone from the team and we won’t let that go.

“And it’s not just to keep it until we are better. The spirit of Frank and the family is still there, and will always be there.”

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