The Williams Racing Team would complete their final day of running of the 2023 season with the post season Abu Dhabi Test. The day would see both regular drivers Alex Albon and Logan Sargeant complete their final test programmes. They would be joined by Academy drivers Zak O'Sullivan and Franco Colapinto who would complete their Young Drivers test. Both Zak and Franco were able to have productive tests. Next time we will see the team able to run a car will be in the pre season testing of the 2024 FW46.
Williams
Racing Abu Dhabi Test 2023
Zak O’Sullivan:
"It’s been an enjoyable day. Of course, for me it was good to have
the reference from FP1, so I had a few areas to work on from there.
Straight away from the first push lap I was able to match my pace from
earlier in the week. It was good to get some proper representative
running in also in quite relevant conditions in the middle of the day
which was nice. We got through a good sweep of performance runs and race
runs. I had more freedom to experiment with things and push a bit harder
than FP1. Thanks again to Williams Racing for the opportunity to drive
the FW45 this weekend and provide me with valuable experience."
Franco Colapinto:
"It’s been incredible to get my first taste of a Formula 1 car and
to do it with Williams Racing. It’s hard to describe all the emotions,
sensations and feelings I’ve went through today. Since I was very
little, I’ve been dreaming of this moment of one day jumping in a
Formula 1 car. Being able to drive the FW45 was an amazing experience.
It’s been a great way to finish my first year as part of the Williams
Racing Driver Academy. I tried to make the most of every lap and learn
as much as possible. I’m very grateful to everyone one at Williams
Racing for giving me this opportunity and the support they’ve shown."
Dave Robson, Head of Vehicle Performance:
"Today
was the final day of running in 2023 and we completed our programmes as
planned. The two cars completed 222 laps between them with Alex and
Logan sharing the day in one car and Franco and Zak driving the Young
Driver car.
Franco was very good this morning, completing more than 300km without
any issues and at good pace. He experienced several of the Pirelli
compounds and provided some valuable feedback and interesting comments
about the FW45.
Zak was very quickly up to speed following his running in FP1. He
quickly got accustomed to the improved track conditions and was able to
find a good rhythm at low and high fuel. He was able to maximise the
learning he got on Friday to manage the tyres well and this helped him
improve his laptime.
It was nice to finish the season with a clean and productive day and to
end the FW45 running on a high. The whole team have worked tirelessly
since February to operate and develop this car and, alongside our
colleagues from Mercedes, we can be proud of what we have achieved. The
travelling team now join the factory-based team in switching our full
focus to FW46 and we are already looking forward to shaking it down in a
couple of months’ time."
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