Is Williams’ FW44 One of the Most Unique F1 Challengers of 2022?

Williams Racing unveiled their 2022 F1 challenger, FW44, on Tuesday and the responses have been quite impressive. The fans seem happy with the car, especially considering the British outfit opted for an all-Blue livery instead of the White-dominant livery, which had been the case over the years.

But that’s not the only surprise that Williams managed to spring upon the F1 community. Instead, there are numerous changes to the design of the FW44 in general which have caught the attention of many, and the comparisons, too, have begun to the other cars that have had their covers off in recent weeks.

Unsurprisingly, the car looks absolutely different from not only their own 2021 challenger, the FW43B but also rivals’ 2022 challengers as well, in almost every aspect. Well, here’s all about the modifications the latest Williams F1 car has managed to obtain.

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Changes to the Williams FW44

According to Motorsport, there are massive changes to the FW44 right from the front wing to the side pods to the rear wing. Starting from the front, the nose has a more dome-like shape than the other unveiled cars. “The nose tip is connected to the second of four front wing elements, with the mainplane drooped down in the central region to help direct airflow to the underside of the nose.”

However, the biggest difference of all is around the side pod, which has been the case so far this year. Every team has come up with their own unique designs and none of the cars look similar. Williams “appear to have added more of the cooling to the centreline of the car, which is evidenced by the much bigger, rectangular airbox and large engine cover aft of it.”

Williams probably sought inspiration from the previous cars designed by teams like Red Bull and AlphaTauri, designing a steep side pod that runs down to the floor and into the engine cover bodywork as early as possible.

And of course, there is also the pull-rod rear suspension design. Hence, it is highly possible that Mercedes, too, will follow a similar layout on their W13. So, will we get to see a Williams lookalike with the upcoming Mercedes challenger? Well, the answer is hardly a day away.

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