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Pat Symonds will be leaving the Williams team at end of the year
It was announced this afternoon that Williams technical director Pat Symonds will leave the team at the end of this year.
Symonds joined Williams on a three-year deal at the end of 2013 and is set to depart when that contract expires on December 31, 2016. Under his technical direction, Williams has returned to the front half of the grid and finished third in the constructors’ championship in 2014 and 2015 before slipping to fifth this year.
In the past week, Mercedes technical boss Paddy Lowe has been linked to a top job at Williams next season and Symonds’ departure could be the first concrete sign that the deal is going ahead.
In a statement to the media this afternoon Williams deputy team principal Claire Williams had nothing but praise for Symonds and thanks him for all the work he has done within the past three years for the team.
“Pat has been a tremendous asset to this team over the past three years,†said Williams. “Pat’s appointment was the start of a major restructuring exercise, and he has been pivotal in reshaping Williams into what is a much stronger racing team today.
“I would like to thank him for all his hard work and commitment during that time. We now look to the future and will be announcing details regarding the team’s technical leadership in due course.”
Symonds joined the team from Virgin Racing in 2013, which was his first job back in Formula One following his involvement in the Renault Crashgate scandal in 2008. In 2009 Symonds was suspended from working in the sport by the FIA for his role in the incident, but the ban was overturned the following year and Symonds was paid compensation.
Earlier in his career, Symonds had been one of the key Renault personnel behind Fernando Alonso’s championship successes in 2005 and 2006 as well as Michael Schumacher’s title victories a decade earlier in 1994 and 1995 when the team was running under the Benetton name.
Ferrari release launch date for their 2017 car
It was announced today that the Ferrari team will launch its 2017 F1 car on February 24.
The Ferrari team announced the date at its Christmas celebrations as all of F1 looks ahead to the new regulations coming next year. The cars will be wider, with wider wings and a larger diffuser to produce more downforce. They will also have a bigger tyre footprint, with Pirelli’s new rubber roughly 25% wider than the tyres used in 2016.
Ferrari’s launch will take place on the Friday before the first test, which is due to start in Barcelona on February 27 and will last for four days. The second test will run from March 7-10 before the season opener in Australia on March 26.
Sarah Jones- @jonesy_laaa
