The Williams FW23 was the car with which the Williams team competed in the 2001 Formula One World Championship. It was driven by German Ralf Schumacher, who was in his third year with the team, and Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya, a previous Formula 3000 and CART champion who was making his F1 début.
This was the first Williams car supplied with Michelin tyres since the FW07 in 1981.
Overview
Car and season
2001 was Williams' second year with engine partners BMW and the promise shown in 2000 translated into raw speed and some good results throughout the year, including the team's first win since 1997, at Imola. The powerful engine, well-designed chassis, the Michelin tyres' tendency to work well in hot conditions and the efforts of two quick drivers resulted in a haul of four victories and the team's re-emergence at the top of the sport, alongside Ferrari and McLaren. The car was especially strong on faster circuits such as Hockenheim and Monza, where the BMW engine put Williams at a distinct advantage over their rivals.
However, Williams was not able to mount a title challenge, for several reasons. Firstly, the BMW engines were more unreliable than their rivals, resulting in a finishing rate of less than 50%. Secondly, in contrast to the faster circuits, the chassis was not as competitive on high-downforce tracks such as Monaco and the Hungaroring. Thirdly, both drivers made several mistakes, Montoya in particular as he came to terms with F1.
However, the team still finished a clear third in the Constructors' Championship, with 80 points.[2]
A total of nine chassis were built.
Sponsorship and livery
BMW Williams went into the 2001 season with renewed major sponsorships such as Allianz, Nortel Networks, Compaq, Reuters, Veltins, Petrobras and Castrol. The team received new sponsorship from WorldCom while 11880.com was discontinued. The livery was similar to the 2000 design with subtle changes.
In free practice ahead of the San Marino Grand Prix, Williams jokingly painted their rear wing with a text saying "Keep Your Distance!" after several rear-end shunts in the opening races, most notably by Jos Verstappen on Montoya whilst leading in Brazil.[3]
Gallery
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FW23-05, 2001 -
FW23-05, rear view
Complete Formula One results
(key) (results in bold indicate pole position)
| Year | Team | Engine | Tyres | Drivers | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | Points | WCC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Williams | BMW V10 | M | AUS | MAL | BRA | SMR | ESP | AUT | MON | CAN | EUR | FRA | GBR | GER | HUN | BEL | ITA | USA | JPN | 80 | 3rd | |
 Ralf Schumacher
|
Ret | 5 | Ret | 1 | Ret | Ret | Ret | 1 | 4 | 2 | Ret | 1 | 4 | 7 | 3 | Ret | 6 | ||||||
 Juan Pablo Montoya
|
Ret | Ret | Ret | Ret | 2 | Ret | Ret | Ret | 2 | Ret | 4 | Ret | 8 | Ret | 1 | Ret | 2 | ||||||
| Sources:[4][5] | |||||||||||||||||||||||
References
- Henry, Alan, ed. (2001). AUTOCOURSE 2001-2002. Hazleton Publishing Ltd. pp. 66–68. ISBN 1-903135-06-0.
- ^ DeMattia, Nico (25 July 2015). "One of the greatest engines in history of Formula 1: BMW V10". BMW BLOG. Retrieved 15 November 2020.
- ^ Jones, Bruce (2002). "2001 Final Tables". The Official F1 Grand Prix Guide 2002. London, England: Carlton Books. pp. 106–107. ISBN 1-84222-557-X – via Internet Archive.
- ^ "Williams tell rivals: "Keep your distance!"". Crash.net. 13 April 2001. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
- ^ "All championship race entries, in an Williams FW23". ChicaneF1. Retrieved 3 March 2025.
- ^ "Williams FW23". StatsF1. Retrieved 3 March 2025.
