Motorsports: Williams Renault Team Up for 2012

Renault Sport F1, the F1 division of Renault, will supply AT&T Williams with its championship-winning V8 power units for the 2012 and 2013 seasons. In addition to the supply of its Formula One engines, the newly-formed alliance includes several other exciting business and marketing opportunities, with a view to continuing after the introduction of the new, energy efficient, turbocharged V6 engines in 2014.

The partnership is an exciting opportunity for both Renault Sport F1 and AT&T Williams. The original Anglo-French alliance enjoyed a hugely successful association between 1989 and 1997, yielding four Drivers’ and five Constructors’ titles and 63 race wins. It also produced some of the most evocative images of the 1990s, including Nigel Mansell’s British Grand Prix win in 1992; Alain Prost’s fourth world title and the classic duels between Damon Hill, Jacques Villeneuve and Michael Schumacher.

Williams and Renault launched their first challenger in 1989 with Renault developing a brand new 3.5l normally aspirated V10 engine for the changed engine regulations. In its first year of competition, the partnership won two Grands Prix and laid the foundations for the following year’s car, the FW14, which was to go down in F1 legend as one of the greatest ever chassis-engine packages. So successful in fact that three iterations of the chassis were made, including the FW14B that dominated F1 in 1992, winning 10 of the 16 races and powering Nigel Mansell to the championship title as early as the mid-season Hungarian Grand Prix.

Mansell’s was to be the first of the partnership’s four drivers’ titles, the others coming in 1993 (Prost) and then 1996 (Hill) and 1997 (Villeneuve), and five constructors’ titles (1992, 1993, 1994, 1996 and 1997).

Outside F1, Williams and Renault also collaborated on a touring car project in which Renault Lagunas were developed and raced in the British Touring Car Championship. Again, success came quickly and the partnership won all three Championships in 1997: the Drivers', Manufacturers' and Team Trophies. The partnership also designed and built the iconic Renault Clio Williams, one of the most prized hot-hatches of a generation.

Credits: wilswong