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Williams calls for more fan research in F1

Claire Williams says the Strategy Group should do more research in to what fans want before trying to implement change in F1.

Potential changes to the regulations have been discussed by the Strategy Group, which includes Mercedes, Ferrari, Red Bull, McLaren, Williams and Force India. Among the proposals have been a change to the engine regulations as well as new aerodynamic rules to change the look of the cars. While the Williams deputy team principal says her team is behind making changes to improve the sport as a spectacle, she says the true wishes of fans need to be understood.

“We think Formula One is a great sport, but as a member of the Strategy Group and being a part of that group there are conversations going on about what we can do to make it a better sport,” Williams said. “So those conversations are focusing around changing the engine formula as it currently is in order to make it louder - which is what fans want - and changing technical regulations to make the cars more radical, more forward looking and more innovative.

“So those are the conversations that we’re having, those are the areas that we’re looking at and it’s about improving what is already a great platform. If that drives more fans to watch our sport and engage with our sport and ensures the sustainability of our sport in to the long term then Williams is 100% behind those conversations.”

Asked how the Strategy Group canvasses fan opinion, Williams admitted it’s an area which requires improvement.

“As a group we probably need to do more research in to what our fans want and listen to what our fans do want before actually doing things that maybe the fans aren’t interested in us changing because it’s not going to have an impact on them. So it’s really important that you have that two-way conversation rather than just pushing changes out for the sake of it.”

Williams' Pat Symonds has previously said any changes made regarding the future of F1 should be "what the kids want".

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.