JULY 10, 2004

Visitors down Grove way

Our spies at the Williams headquarters in Grove report that there has been a fair amount of activity in recent days which seems to be related to the search for a second driver for 2005. The team is expected to sign up Mark Webber but until recently there has been no obvious indication as to who might be seen in the other car. The news that Ralf Schumacher is moving to Toyota is no surprise but the announcement does open the way for Williams to become more active in its searches.

We hear that two F1 drivers have visited Williams in the last few days: Sauber's Giancarlo Fisichella and Jordan's Nick Heidfeld. Both men are highly experienced F1 drivers but neither has enjoyed the results that might have been expected of them. Fisichella did win the Brazilian Grand Prix in 2003, driving a brilliant race but ending up being rather lucky that the race was stopped in the middle of a series of pit stops.

We hear, incidentally, that Juan Pablo Montoya was also seen in the Woking area last week and rumour has it that he was there for a seat fitting at McLaren.