Formula One news

Berger foresaw Williams demise

Gerhard Berger reckons he saw Williams' split with BMW coming. And the former grand prix winner, once closer than any other observer to the F1 collaboration as joint 'BMW motor sport director', blames the divorce on the Grove team. "It really is a long time ago that Williams built a fast car," 46-year-old Berger told Motorsport Aktuell.

He said: "Williams concerns itself probably too much with the past and is too far behind in the aerodynamic field."

Without the Grove team, he says BMW can start to win again 'in the next three years'.
1999-2004 Williams driver Ralf Schumacher agrees with Berger's assessment about who was most to blame for the six-year collaboration's demise.

The German said the ultimate split was 'obvious'. "That's why I decided to go elsewhere," Ralf, 30 - now a Toyota driver - explained. "I don't think it has anything to do with BMW -- it has always been a good engine."

Regarding another 2005 underperformer, meanwhile, Berger sees light at the end of the tunnel. The former Ferrari driver says he holds the red team in 'very high regard'. "And Michael Schumacher is surely still highly motivated," Gerhard explained.

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