A year ago, Sir Frank Williams left us (1942-2021)

Died a year ago, on Sunday November 28, 2021 at the age of 79, Sir Frank Williams was an extraordinary personality, whose longevity in motorsport is rivaled only by Enzo Ferrari. This self-made man had to overcome many obstacles before making his team a strong reference with 114 victories and 16 world titles in F1.

Published on 28/11/2022 à 17:00

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A year ago, Sir Frank Williams left us (1942-2021)

Above all, we keep the image of Sir Frank as this inscrutable man, leading his team from his wheelchair. This disastrous March 8, 1986 left him quadriplegic following a road accident leaving the Paul-Ricard circuit, where he had just attended the last test session before the start of the season. His condition seemed so desperate that Marseille doctors asked his wife for permission to disconnect the machine keeping him alive. Knowing the strength of character of her man, she refused and Frank was repatriated to London, where he almost breathed his last several times before his situation improved. After twelve weeks in hospital he was able to return home and in mid-July he made his public reappearance during testing for the British GP, to the cheers of fans. By making the faithful Patrick Head his partner in the creation of Williams Engineering and by tirelessly hiring young engineers on the verge of becoming big names, Frank Williams was able to build solid foundations for his team, on which he would be able to rely in order to continue his work.