Williams has announced that it has struck a deal with Renault to run their engines from 2012 and beyond.
The partnership marks a return to the 1980/90’s when the Williams-Renault outfit dominated the sport.
The supply will begin next season and will include the change in engine regulations when the sport switches to V6 engines from 2014.
Frank Williams, Team Principal of AT&T Williams, was delighted to announce the news and thanked Cosworth for their support in 2010 and 2011.
“We are delighted and excited by our new partnership with Renault. This reunites the F1 team with a leading car manufacturer and complements our new relationship with Jaguar. At the same time, we are grateful to Cosworth: they have been a fair and reliable partner both on and off the track for the past two years and we look forward to working with them across our business in the future.
“Our previous relationship with Renault was one of the most successful in Williams’ history but we will not allow ourselves to dwell too much on the past. We must look to the future and continue to re-build our on-track reputation, which I am hopeful that today’s announcement will help us to do.”
Renault Sport F1 president, Bernard Rey, added: “Renault remains in Formula One to achieve success in a cost efficient way and the partnership with Williams has great potential to add to the results we have notched up over recent years with our other partner teams. Williams has recently taken several important steps, both commercially and technically, to update its operations and we feel that this partnership is another important step in its rigorous plan. It reiterates how determined the team is to achieve results, which matches perfectly with our own objectives.
“From 2012 onwards the fact that we will have four partners puts us ahead of other engine manufacturers in terms of market share, but off track it will also enable us to further use Formula One as a marketing platform for our parent company, Renault, to try to bring a bit of this association to our fans and our customers worldwide.
“Of course there’s also a great pride in reviving the Williams-Renault name. Together, we produced racing cars that are recognised for their technical innovation and it is still Renault’s most successful period in F1 to date. It’s a hugely exciting opportunity for both Renault and Williams.”
Renault will now supply four teams in 2012; Renault, Red Bull, Williams and Team Lotus, whilst Cosworth will supply just two; Virgin and Hispania.
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