Frank Williams Racing Cars Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Frank Williams Racing Cars
Formula One World Championship career

Full name	Frank Williams Racing Cars
Founder(s)	Frank Williams
Noted drivers	Piers Courage Jacques Laffite Carlos Pace Jacky Ickx Ronnie Peterson
Next name	Walter Wolf Racing
First entry	1969 Spanish Grand Prix
Races entered	105 (96 starts)
Constructors' Championships	0
Drivers' Championships	0
Race victories	0
Pole positions	0
Fastest laps	1
Final entry	1976 Japanese Grand Prix

Frank Williams Racing Cars was a British Formula One team that raced cars from 1969 to 1976. It was founded by Frank Williams, who later started the very successful Williams Grand Prix Engineering team. This first team faced many challenges, especially with money, but it helped Frank Williams learn a lot about running a racing team.

Starting the Team
- Working with De Tomaso
- Tough Times in 1971
Building Their Own Cars (1972–1975)
Becoming Wolf–Williams Racing (1976)
Race Results Summary
See also

Starting the Team

Piers Courage driving a Williams-entered Brabham car at the 1969 British Grand Prix.

Frank Williams loved motor racing from a young age. After racing himself, he became very good at buying and selling racing cars and parts. He realized he was better at managing a team than driving. So, he started helping other drivers, especially his friend Piers Courage.

In 1969, Williams bought a Brabham Formula One car for Courage. Piers Courage had a fantastic year, finishing second in two big races: the Monaco Grand Prix and the United States Grand Prix. This success showed that Frank Williams could run a competitive team.

Working with De Tomaso

Because of their good results, an Italian car company called De Tomaso became interested. They built a new Formula One car for Williams's team for the 1970 season. However, this new car was not very good at first. Sadly, during the Dutch Grand Prix, Piers Courage had a serious accident in the De Tomaso car and passed away. This was a very difficult time for Frank Williams, and it changed how he managed his team.

The team continued with other drivers, but they didn't get any good results. So, the partnership with De Tomaso ended.

Tough Times in 1971

For the 1971 season, Williams bought an older March car. The team struggled a lot with money, often living from race to race. Despite the difficulties, their driver, Henri Pescarolo, managed to finish fourth at the British Grand Prix and sixth in Austria. These results helped the team keep going.

Building Their Own Cars (1972–1975)

Politoys and the FX3 Car

In 1972, a French oil company called Motul and an Italian toy company called Politoys started sponsoring the team. This money allowed Williams to buy a new March car and, for the first time, build their own car! This new car was called the Politoys FX3.

The Politoys FX3 was designed by Len Bailey. It raced for the first time at the British Grand Prix, but it crashed and was badly damaged. After being rebuilt, it raced one more time but had engine problems.

Iso–Marlboro and New Designs

At the end of 1972, Motul and Politoys stopped their support. But Frank Williams found new sponsors: the cigarette company Marlboro and the Italian car maker Iso Autoveicoli S.p.A.. The Politoys FX3 car was updated and renamed the Iso–Marlboro FX3B. They also built a second car.

The FX3B soon became old because of new racing rules. So, the team introduced a new car called the Iso–Marlboro IR. Many different drivers raced this car in 1973. One driver, Howden Ganley, scored a point for the team at the Canadian Grand Prix. Another driver, Gijs van Lennep, also scored a point at his home race in the Netherlands.

The First Williams Cars

Before the 1974 season, Iso Rivolta and Marlboro left, causing more money problems for Williams. The team kept the IR cars but renamed them FW (after Frank Williams). These cars were later called Williams FW01, FW02, and FW03.

Gijs van Lennep in the Iso–Marlboro FW car at the 1974 Dutch Grand Prix.

The team's main driver, Arturo Merzario, scored a point early in 1974. To help with money, Williams hired "pay drivers" – drivers who brought their own sponsorship money. Later, Jacques Laffite joined the team, and their performance improved. Merzario finished fourth in Italy, which was a great result and brought much-needed money.

In 1975, Williams decided they needed a completely new car. The Williams FW04 was the first car to officially carry the Williams name. It replaced the older FW02 car.

Around this time, Frank Williams hired a talented engineer named Patrick Head. This was a very important moment, as Patrick Head would later become a key partner when Frank Williams started his next, more famous team in 1977.

A big surprise happened at the German Grand Prix. Despite all the money troubles, Jacques Laffite drove the FW04 car to an amazing second place! This was a huge boost for the team, which was almost out of money. It was their only points finish that season, but it showed their fighting spirit.

Becoming Wolf–Williams Racing (1976)

Before the 1976 season, a rich Canadian businessman named Walter Wolf bought most of Frank Williams Racing Cars. The team was renamed Wolf–Williams Racing. Frank Williams stayed on as the team manager. Wolf also bought cars and equipment from another team, Hesketh, and used them. The cars were renamed Wolf–Williams FW04 and FW05.

At the end of 1976, Walter Wolf decided to make more changes. He removed Frank Williams from his manager role. Feeling disappointed, Frank Williams left the team completely. He then teamed up with Patrick Head to create a brand new team, which became Williams Grand Prix Engineering in 1977. Walter Wolf then took full control, and the team became Walter Wolf Racing.

Race Results Summary

This table shows how Frank Williams Racing Cars performed in the official Formula One World Championship races.

Year	Chassis	Engine	Tyres	Drivers	Best Finish	Points	Constructors' Championship Position
1969	Brabham BT26A	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	D	Piers Courage	2nd	N/A (No Constructors' Championship in 1969)	N/A
1970	De Tomaso 505	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	D	Piers Courage Brian Redman Tim Schenken	NC (Not Classified)	N/A	N/A
1971	March 701 March 711	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G	Henri Pescarolo Max Jean	4th	N/A	N/A
1972	March 711 March 721 Politoys FX3	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G	Carlos Pace Henri Pescarolo	5th	0	NC (Not Classified)
1973	Iso–Marlboro FX3B Iso–Marlboro IR	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	F	Howden Ganley Nanni Galli Jackie Pretorius Tom Belsø Henri Pescarolo Graham McRae Gijs van Lennep Tim Schenken Jacky Ickx	6th	2	10th
1974	Iso–Marlboro FW	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	F	Arturo Merzario Richard Robarts Tom Belsø Gijs van Lennep Jean-Pierre Jabouille Jacques Laffite	4th	4	10th
1975	Williams FW Williams FW04	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G	Arturo Merzario Damien Magee François Migault Ian Ashley Jo Vonlanthen Renzo Zorzi Lella Lombardi Jacques Laffite Tony Brise Ian Scheckter	2nd	6	9th
1976	Wolf–Williams FW04 Wolf–Williams FW05	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G	Jacky Ickx Arturo Merzario Renzo Zorzi Michel Leclère Chris Amon Warwick Brown Hans Binder Masami Kuwashima Emilio Zapico	7th	0	NC (Not Classified)