FW30 has that winning look

Williams' Director of Engineering was speaking at the official launch of the FW30, which marked the end of winter-testing and the start of the countdown towards the Australian Grand Prix.

"It's too early to say where we will be in the pecking order, but we have certainly made progress," said Patrick.

The new FW30 performed exceptionally well during testing, prompting many commentators to tip the AT&T Williams team as a dark horse for the new season.

"The FW30 is a progression along the theme of the FW29, although the cooling installations are quite different," added Patrick."And it's benefited from nearly nine months' of aero development from the original FW29."

It's 11 years since Williams won either the drivers' or constructors championship. However, surely no neutral would grudge team principal Sir Frank Williams another title in this, his 39th season in Formula One.

"Ten years is a miserably long time, and Patrick and I wince every time we think about it," said Sir Frank. "But life's tough - you just have to work hard to get back to the top. Whether we've turned a corner, we'll only be able to tell once the season gets underway."

Leading the challenge for AT&T Williams will be Nico Rosberg, returning for his third season with the team, and Kazuki Nakajima, who has been promoted from test driver.

Both are relatively inexperienced but Sir Frank has seen enough drivers in nearly 600 GP entries (he'll mark the milestone at Monaco in May) to know what makes a contender.

He said: "We have the highest regard for Nico - he's fundamental to the team - and we have great confidence that, given the right equipment, he will win races.

"With Kazuki, we knew we were taking a bit of a gamble when we signed him, but we've been pleasantly surprised by his testing pace."