Williams team principal James Vowles reflects on his time at Mercedes. The Brit worked under team boss Toto Wolff at the Silver Arrows until he took up his role as team principal at Williams in 2023. However, the Austrian’s leadership style has left its mark on Vowles: ‘I couldn’t have done it without his guidance.’
Before James Vowles took up his role as team principal at Williams, he was the Motorsport Strategy Director at Mercedes. The Brit worked closely with team boss Toto Wolff for many years. Therefore, the Austrian’s leadership style still influences Vowles’ approach at Williams. Which part of the team boss’s approach exactly? “Toto just joked: ‘Everything’, but that’s actually no joke. That’s really true,” the Williams team principal recently told Formula1.com.
“I had the pleasure that Toto, probably ten or twelve years ago, took me under his wing,” Vowles continued. “He gradually let me take on more responsibility within the organization in a way that exposed me to the difficulties he faces daily, but in a safe and positive way. And there’s no doubt: I couldn’t have done it without his expertise and guidance. However, he’s a bit shy about it, and therefore doesn’t talk about it much.”
‘I was in Vowles’ way’
Vowles is not the only one showering compliments, Wolff himself also has nothing but good things to say about his British former colleague. “You know, James (Vowles) could have become team boss at Mercedes, if I wasn’t there. I was in his way. So he chose a different path, and he’s doing very well at Williams, as you can see.”
