Williams: My gamble with Maldonado paid off

Williams F1 Team was criticized for recruiting Pastor Maldonado after the Venezuelan won the GP2 title at the end of his fourth season in the discipline. But Grove was in dire need of money and the support of the oil group PDVSA provided sufficient income to keep the team afloat. If this recruit has fueled debates on the growing presence of paying drivers in F1, the latter are taking advantage of the multiple opportunities offered this season to highlight themselves and silence the critics. After second place in Sergio Perez at the Malaysian Grand Prix, Pastor Maldonado silences critics by taking a deserved victory in Barcelona.

Frank Williams, who could not have received a better gift when he had just celebrated his 70th birthday, was keen to point out that the choice of the Venezuelan had been made above all in relation to his performances rather than with the financial attraction that 'he generated. “Of course it played a role, I don’t deny it”, he admits, however. “But if we had judged him to be incapable, he would not have set foot in this stable, no matter how much money he had. He has done a very positive job in GP2 and he totally deserves to be in the team regardless of the money he brings with him. The fact is you can't do F1 without money. I am amazed at how he controlled himself without making the slightest mistake. A driver tends to make a mistake when he finds himself in the lead for the first time. But from what I've seen, he never had that tendency. He constantly remained calm on the radio. It's the first race that he leads constantly, the pressure mounts not to think about the podium, what his mother will say or the financial reward. We think about not crashing, not making mistakes, braking a little earlier. That's what he did. »

Discover the analysis of the Spanish Grand Prix carried out by our special correspondents in the new issue of AUTOhebdo, available today in digital version for iPad, PC and Mac, and from tomorrow on newsstands.