Williams hopes Lowe speculation ends soon

Claire Williams says she hopes to see speculation swirling around Paddy Lowe's future end soon, with the former Mercedes technical boss expected to join her team in the near future.

Lowe is currently on gardening leave after he left the German manufacturer in the wake of three consecutive championship-winning seasons in the current 1.6-litre V6 turbocharged era.

The 54-year-old has been tipped for a return to Williams, where he began his F1 career in the late 1980s, with previous reports saying he would take up his new role in March.

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Speaking to BBC 5 live Sport in a wide-ranging interview, Williams remained tight-lipped when asked on the subject.

“A lot of people have been talking about this: We have been providing all the media that follow our sport a great winter with the shenanigans that have been going on at Mercedes and at Williams,” the deputy team principal said in reference to Valtteri Bottas replacing Nico Rosberg.

“We’ve provided you with a lot column inches. Hopefully all the speculation will be over in the near time but I can’t comment whether Paddy is joining Williams or not.

“He is a fantastic technical director and any team would be really lucky to have him.”

Williams announced on Thursday that Dirk de Beer had been appointed as its new head of aerodynamics. On the same day, former Ferrari tech boss James Allison was confirmed at Mercedes in what has been a winter of change on the top engineer market.

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