Williams drivers to run new front wing at Silverstone

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Both Williams drivers Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas will be provided with the new front wing which appeared in Austria last weekend.

The new wing was initially only fitted to Massa's car at the Red Bull Ring, but structural damage sustained during qualifying forced Williams to revert back to the old-spec wing for Sunday's race, which resulted in Massa starting from the pit lane.

A thorough analysis of the component and a subsequent modification will now enable the Grove squad to fit the wing to both driver's FW38.

"We're confident that we have overcome the problem that forced Felipe to start from the pitlane and expect both cars to be running the latest front wing, which showed a positive result during testing in Austria," said Chief technical officer, Pat Symonds.

Looking ahead at next weekend's British Grand Prix, Symonds expressed confidence in achieving a good result on home soil.

"Silverstone is another strong circuit for us and even though Austria did not deliver what it promised, there is no reason to think that our home race won’t give us a strong result.

"The weather in Britain has been quite unpredictable over the last month and may well play a role in the outcome of the weekend ahead.

"We always look forward to racing at our home circuit, particularly as it gives our factory-based workforce, who contribute so much to the overall performance of the car, the opportunity to see the product of their work race in anger.

"We’ve enjoyed good performances here over the last couple of years, which also adds to the enjoyment of this challenging track."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.