Williams has created four special livery designs in collaboration with Gulf, the designs will be voted on by the public and used in the run up to the final race of the season.
Coming up with four possible designs, the team will put these designs to a public vote and use the winning design at the Singapore, Japan and Qatar GPs.
Gulf originally wanted to repeat its one-off deal with McLaren at Monaco GP 2021, but there has been a more interesting change in plans.
The color settings are Legacy, Modern, Vision, and Bolder than Bold, respectively.
Williams FW45 Heritage Gulf livery
Photo: Williams
The original design resembles the color scheme used by McLaren and is intended to reflect the Gulf’s early years in sports car racing. The other three designs are more modern.
Williams team principal James Vowles said he preferred a version that reflected Gulf’s past.
“Heritage reminds me of the great era of motorsport, when it was all about racing,” said Vowles.
“The Gulf sponsored paint schemes for the Ford GT40 and later Porsche are amazing, so I’m very happy to have the opportunity to partner with them and use the same paint scheme.”
Williams FW45 Visionary Gulf livery
Photo: Williams
“The color schemes represent our sport and the history of sports. Two products with incredible legacies meet. That’s why designs work. It’s not about the designs themselves, but the legacy they leave behind.” say.
Thinking that modern designs can also appeal to the current audience, Vowles said, “F1 now has an audience with different tastes.”
“We have a historic brand structure, but it also has different modern versions. I think it suits the current demographic of F1.”
“F1 has grown significantly over the last 10 years. If you look carefully, we see that now it is not adults and the elderly, but young people and women who are more committed to the sport.”
Williams FW45 Contemporary Gulf livery
Photo: Williams
“It’s hard to describe, but I would say the designs look very modern when interpreted in different ways.” say.
Gulf International CEO Mike Jones says the company is excited to test new designs.
“Our partnership with Williams extends to esports challenges, so we had this type of partnership in mind,” Jones said.
“Our modern designs emphasize this partnership, as the Williams colors are reflected in one of the designs.”
“Are we going to go traditional or go different? We have all three color schemes, everyone has their favorite.” say.
Williams driver Alex Albon prefers a traditional design like Vowles.
“Traditional design is good for me. I’m a simple person, I like clean lines. I used to like to keep my hats in a simple design,” says Albon.
“I wear boring helmets now, I think I’m mature!” say.
Williams FW45 Bolder Than Bold Gulf livery
Photo: Williams