James Vowles addresses “false” claims about Williams F1 team amid lawsuit
Williams boss James Vowles responds to allegations made against the F1 team.
The Williams Formula 1 team has for the first time publicly responded to allegations made against it in a recent newspaper report.
An article published on 28 May by British newspaper The Guardian, entitled ‘who really controls the Williams F1 team?’, reported that Williams and its parent company, Dorilton Capital, is embroiled in a “messy” legal battle with a former executive, Claudia Schwarz.
Schwarz, who was dismissed in 2022, alleges in court filings that she was fired after raising concerns about sexism and racism, as well as questioning the ultimate ownership of the Williams F1 team. The former chief marketing officer claims Williams is ultimately controlled by billionaire Peter de Putron, who has close links to the Conservative Party.
At the same time, Dorilton has accused Schwarz of fiddling her expenses, charging inflated fees and defrauding the company. Additionally, the Dorilton lawsuit claims an inappropriate relationship took place between Schwarz and Darren Fultz, a former CEO of Williams’ parent company. She denies all of the claims.
Williams team principal James Vowles was asked about the report on Friday at the Monaco Grand Prix. He brushed off the allegations against Williams as “false” and "misleading".
“The first thing on that very clearly, it’s a legal case and a complex legal case and there’s not a lot I can talk about publicly,” Vowles told Sky Sports F1.
“But those claims are false, for a start, and they will be fought in a court of law, where they should be at this point of time. They are misleading.
“The team is comfortable. They know who we are, what we represent and what we stand for as our values, and none of that has changed.”
Williams was bought by US-based investment firm Dorilton in August 2020 after being put up for sale in the May of the same year, having posted a £13m loss in 2019.
The Grove-based outfit was founded in 1977 by Sir Frank Williams and Sir Patrick Head and has won nine constructors’ world championships and seven drivers’ world titles. The most recent world title was won by Jacques Villeneuve in 1997.
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