88 GP RACING MARCH 2020
While George Russellfeels he
arguably spenttoo much time
in the simulatorlast year, the
sim continuesto play a vital
role insupporting theteam’s
effortsto get the most out
of the car.
Williams already had
W Series championJamie
Chadwickon the books asa
development driver, juggling
a tracksiderole on race
weekends with simulator
work, buthas boosted its
arsenal of young talent.
Macau F3 GrandPrix
winnerDan Ticktum– the
2017 McLarenAutosport
BRDCAward winner –joined
the Williams Driver Academyand will race in F2. Despite
the roller coaster nature of
his career – he was dropped
fromRed Bull’s young driver
programme mid-way through
his SuperFormula season
last year –Ticktum has not
only won races, he’s spent
three seasons asa par t-time
sim jockeyfor Red Bull.
F2 race winnerJack
Aitkenarrived at Williams
as reserve driver on the eve
of the seasonafter leaving
Renault’s young driver
programme. As part of that
he wasRenault’s officialtest
and reserve driverfor the
past two seasons.At Williams
he’ll be the backbone of thesim effort between race
weekends whilejoining the
tracksideteam at grands prix,
where he’ll run the F1 car in at
least one practicesession.
Additionally, Williams
has madeRoyNissanyits
officialtest driverfor 2020.
Nissany is theson of Isra eli
businessman Chanoch
Nissany, a hobbyist who
famously drove in practice
for Minardi at the 2005
Hungarian GP. Roytested for
Williams in AbuDhabi last
year and this season arookie
test, threeFP1 sessionsand
a sim programme await, plus
a returnto F2 after a year out
recovering froma wrist injury.George also – tacitly – acknowledges that
perhaps he was tryingtoohard lastyear to be
across all aspects of his own and the team’s
performance. With a year of experience he’s
looking to dial down how muchenerg y he
expends in certain areas so he can channel it
towards activities that yield greater results.
There will befewer days in the simulator, for
instance – Williams now has three other young
drivers on the booksfor that (see sidebar).
“I’ve changed how I prepare withthe team,”
Russellsays. “I had thephilosophy lastyear
that I hadto do as much as possible and make
sure no stone was leftunturned. I didn’t know
what to expect, or what was required of a driver
in terms oftime at the factory or whatever.
Now I know what’s required.”
It’s not a case of just doing more training.
With a 22-race calendar in prospect (China’s
‘postponement’ notwithstanding) and further
expansion tocome in future years, avoiding
burn-out will become a key skill in a driver’s
toolbox. Russell says, “It’s about being efficient:
more isn’t always better.”
When it comes to physicaltraining, maybe.
But regardless of how the FW43 performs this
season, we reckon there’s more to come from
George Russell. Better? For sure. We expect great
things from a young man who already has the
Jamie Chadwick DanTicktum Jack Aitken Roy Nissany hallmarks of the Williamsgrea ts of yesteryear.THE WILLIAMS YOUTH CLUB
88 GP RACING MARCH 2020
While George Russellfeels he
arguably spenttoo much time
in the simulatorlast year, the
sim continuesto play a vital
role insupporting theteam’s
effortsto get the most out
of the car.
Williams already had
W Series championJamie
Chadwickon the books asa
development driver, juggling
a tracksiderole on race
weekends with simulator
work, buthas boosted its
arsenal of young talent.
Macau F3 GrandPrix
winnerDan Ticktum– the
2017 McLarenAutosport
BRDCAward winner –joined
the Williams Driver Academyand will race in F2. Despite
the roller coaster nature of
his career – he was dropped
fromRed Bull’s young driver
programme mid-way through
his SuperFormula season
last year –Ticktum has not
only won races, he’s spent
three seasons asa par t-time
sim jockeyfor Red Bull.
F2 race winnerJack
Aitkenarrived at Williams
as reserve driver on the eve
of the seasonafter leaving
Renault’s young driver
programme. As part of that
he wasRenault’s officialtest
and reserve driverfor the
past two seasons.At Williams
he’ll be the backbone of thesim effort between race
weekends whilejoining the
tracksideteam at grands prix,
where he’ll run the F1 car in at
least one practicesession.
Additionally, Williams
has madeRoyNissanyits
officialtest driverfor 2020.
Nissany is theson of Isra eli
businessman Chanoch
Nissany, a hobbyist who
famously drove in practice
for Minardi at the 2005
Hungarian GP. Roytested for
Williams in AbuDhabi last
year and this season arookie
test, threeFP1 sessionsand
a sim programme await, plus
a returnto F2 after a year out
recovering froma wrist injury.George also – tacitly – acknowledges that
perhaps he was tryingtoohard lastyear to be
across all aspects of his own and the team’s
performance. With a year of experience he’s
looking to dial down how muchenerg y he
expends in certain areas so he can channel it
towards activities that yield greater results.
There will befewer days in the simulator, for
instance – Williams now has three other young
drivers on the booksfor that (see sidebar).
“I’ve changed how I prepare withthe team,”
Russellsays. “I had thephilosophy lastyear
that I hadto do as much as possible and make
sure no stone was leftunturned. I didn’t know
what to expect, or what was required of a driver
in terms oftime at the factory or whatever.
Now I know what’s required.”
It’s not a case of just doing more training.
With a 22-race calendar in prospect (China’s
‘postponement’ notwithstanding) and further
expansion tocome in future years, avoiding
burn-out will become a key skill in a driver’s
toolbox. Russell says, “It’s about being efficient:
more isn’t always better.”
When it comes to physicaltraining, maybe.
But regardless of how the FW43 performs this
season, we reckon there’s more to come from
George Russell. Better? For sure. We expect great
things from a young man who already has the
Jamie Chadwick DanTicktum Jack Aitken Roy Nissany hallmarks of the Williamsgrea ts of yesteryear.THE WILLIAMSYOUTH CLUB