Six unbelievable facts you might not have known about Williams

Tidbits about Atlassian Williams F1 Team that even the most die-hard fans might not know

Published

09 JAN 2026

Est. reading time

3 min

Atlassian Williams F1 Team is one of Formula 1’s most legendary constructors’, with a history that dates back to the 1970s.

From unforgettable title wins to battling through tough times, we’ve firmly earned our place in the sport's history books.

However, there are plenty of fun and fascinating tidbits about Williams that even the most die-hard fans may not have known. Let’s dive into some of the lesser-known facts about the team.

Six is better than four

In 1981, the emergence of powerful turbo engines meant our ground effect dominance was under threat. With a deficit of roughly 180 horsepower to find, the task of reducing drag and improving aerodynamics was on. The massive rear tyres of the early ‘80s were a huge source of drag, so our engineers in Oxfordshire had an idea, ditching four wheels and having six instead!

The FW07D was born, with two standard wheels at the front, with another four standard wheels at the rear. Simulations suggested massive drag reduction and a huge speed gain so after his win at the 1981 Caesars Palace GP, Alan Jones returned to the UK to test this radical new car. The results were impressive, so the FW08B was built in preparation for the 1982 season. But, the FIA stepped in. With four-wheel drive already forbidden, cars with more than four wheels were subsequently banned. The FW08B lives on, restored by our Heritage team, it often gets run at special events and is on display in our collection.

Alan Jones testing the six-wheeled FW07D at Donington Park.

P1 in Chelsea

Williams stood on the top step of two different podiums in May 2012, taking gold at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show just days after Pastor Maldonado’s win at the Spanish GP. “The Williams F1 Story" was a full-scale topiary F1 car and pit crew, entered to celebrate our 35th anniversary. The winning exhibit took three years to cultivate and featured actual car parts as well as Bruno Senna's race helmet.

First place in Barcelona was swiftly followed by first place in Chelsea.

Vettel’s Debut Drive

Yes, four-time World Champion Sebastian Vettel’s first-ever F1 drive came in a Williams, specifically the FW27. On 27th September 2005, Seb took part in a test at Jerez, his maiden time behind the wheel of Formula 1 machinery. Roll the clock forward two decades and he now owns one of the most legendary Williams cars, an FW14B, and took it for a spin around Silverstone in 2022 (pictured in header).

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Why “Red 5”?

Fans of F1 lore will appreciate that Nigel Mansell, the 1992 F1 World Champion, made the number "Red 5" iconic during his time at Williams. However, the concept of running a red number five was first birthed in 1985. With Williams assigned numbers ‘5’ and ‘6’, the two digits were hard to differentiate from a distance, especially at speed. The solution was to paint the nose cone ‘5’ bright red and keep the ‘6’ in white.

The famous "Red 5" is synonymous with Williams.

Mickey Mouse Motorsport

In December 1996, to celebrate the FW18 taking both the Drivers’ and Constructors’ Championships, Damon Hill was invited to drive our machine up and down Main Street at Disneyland Paris. With cold temperatures and tram tracks to deal with, the World Champion didn’t have it easy, but kept control before being greeted by Mickey Mouse in front of Sleeping Beauty’s Castle. Now that is a sentence you never expected to read today.

The road to success

When Sir Frank Williams purchased an empty industrial unit in Didcot, Oxfordshire, in 1977, little did they know what was to follow. Williams left Didcot for Grove in the late nineties, but the legacy in the town lives on through a road named ‘Sir Frank Williams Avenue’. When it was unveiled in 2012, Sir Frank described the honour as "very touching" but admitted he was "mildly embarrassed"!

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