‘Tragedy, triumph and legend’
Not only did Frank Williams take his team from an empty carpet warehouse to the top of Formula 1 but he also defied severe paralysis to become the longest-serving team boss in F1 history.
CBE, successful businessman, mechanic and racing car driver, (to name just a few), it’s fair to say that Sir Francis Owen Garbett Williams (aka Frank Williams) crammed a lot in his life. But to most of us, he will always be remembered as being the founder of the Williams Formula One team.
Born in South Shields UK, Williams was the son of a military officer father and school teacher mother, however, following their marital break up he was raised by his aunt and uncle and was educated at a boarding school in Dumfries, Scotland.
William’s racing ‘light bulb’ moment was said to have happened in the late 1950’s when a friend gave him a ride in his Jaguar XK150, his passion for fast cars was ignited right then and there and it
was a flame that burned brightly for decades to come.
Following an albeit brief career as a racing driver and mechanic, the then (1966) grocery salesman Williams used his own money to form Frank Williams Racing Cars, where he ran cars in Formula 2 and Formula 3. Satisfied with the results Williams then purchased a second-hand Brabham Formula 1 chassis and put his good friend and driver Piers Courage behind the wheel. Courage raced throughout the 1969 F1 season and finished twice in second place.
Buoyed by the success, the very next year Williams partnered with chassis manufacturer De Tomaso attempting to become even more competitive, but this marriage was unfortunately cut short with the accident and tragic death of Courage at the Dutch Grand Prix.
Despite being utterly devastated, Williams refused to give up on his dream and the following year he ran Frenchman Henri Pescarolo (of Le Mans fame) in a March 711/721 which he subsequently wrecked at the French GP.
“Frank is the best bloke I ever drove for, because he was a great motivator. He could make you walk over glass. He was and still is, a bloody racer.” Alan Jones
In 1972 the first Williams Works F1 car hit the track – The Politoys FX3 designed by Len Bailey (designer on the Ford GT40 project). Unfortunately, Pescarolo crashed and destroyed the car seven laps into its first race. Notably the car was repaired by the end of the season and was raced by NZ’s very own Chris Amon in the John Player Challenge Trophy.
In 1976, after two existing sponsors fell through, Williams reluctantly sold his team to Austro-Canadian oil magnate Walter Wolf. Williams stayed on as an employee for a year but then left in 1977 to establish Williams Grand Prix Engineering with Patrick Head whom he had hired at Wolf’s. Their initial carpet factory facility in Didcot, Oxfordshire was a world away from the glitz and glamour that now surrounds F1, but it was from these humble beginnings that Williams legends were created.
The team’s first win came in 1979 when Clay Regazzoni drove the Cosworth-powered Williams FW07 to victory at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. Then their first Drivers’ and Constructors’ championships both came in 1980, with Australian racing driver Alan Jones winning the drivers’ championship and the team winning the constructors’ title by 54 points.
Tragedy struck again six years later when a freak road car accident near the Paul Ricard circuit in March 1986 resulted in Williams sustaining a spinal cord injury (Tetraplegia) and unable to walk – seemingly undeterred the racing magnate simply attended meets in a wheelchair from there on in.
Between 1979 and 1997, the team won seven drivers’ championships, nine constructors’ championships and a total of 113 wins but William’s list of accolades continued off the track too.
In 1987, the Queen awarded Williams the title of CBE and he was knighted in 1999. He is also one of only a handful of non-Frenchmen to have been made a Chevalier of France’s Legion d’honneur, due to his work with Renault engines. In 2008, he was awarded the Wheatcroft trophy for his contribution to the motorsport industry and in 2010, was awarded the Helen Rollason Award for “outstanding achievement in the face of adversity” at the BBC Sports Personality of The Year Awards.
Sir Frank Williams CBE was admitted to hospital in Surrey on 26 November 2021 and died peacefully two days later, surrounded by his family. He was 79.
His racing spirit lives on.
Dave McLeod
Motoring Writer