Pat Symonds

Formula 1 employee

Vital statistics for Pat Symonds
Nationality	GBR

Symonds has been in Formula One since the early 1980s, and has experienced the highs and lows of helping create championship winning cars, as well as playing consultant to backmarker teams. After serving an F1 ban for race-fixing at Renault, Symonds made an advisory return with the Marussia team, before joining Williams full-time as their Chief Technical Officer.

Biography

Symonds’ F1 career began after experience gained in junior racing categories. He joined the Toleman team during the 1980s and remained with them through their days as Benetton and Renault F1. Starting out as a race engineer, Symonds gradually worked his way up to Head of Research and Development, before being promoted to Technical Director.

Following in the footsteps of the outgoing Ross Brawn wasn’t an easy task, but Symonds helped the team to their two world championships in 2004 and 2005, after being promoted to Executive Director of Engineering.

During the 2009 season, Symonds and Renault team principal Flavio Briatore, were found guilty of race-fixing – asking driver Nelson Piquet Jr to deliberately crash during the Singapore Grand Prix the previous year. Initially, the FIA banned Symonds and Briatore for five years, and the Renault team released him from his contract. After legal wranglings, the ban was reduced.

In 2011, Symonds became an advisor to the Marussia F1 team which resulted in the split with then-technical director Nick Wirth. On the very day that his ban was lifted, it was confirmed that Symonds would join Williams F1, taking on the role of Chief Technical Officer. After a dire couple of season, the Williams team had their hopes pinned on Symonds to turn things around for them.

At the end of 2016, it was confirmed that Symonds would be leaving the team, with Claire Williams thanking him for leaving the team stronger than he found it.

Filed under Formula 1 employees

Date	Title
21/01/2015	Williams provide a look at the FW37
08/12/2014	To be quite Frank
18/09/2013	Slow patrol
03/12/2010	F1 Advent Calendar 2010 (Day 3) - A Renault reinvention
06/10/2008	Ancillary F1 - Météo-France

Date	Title
18/10/2014	Health and safety in Formula 1: Tragedy and action

Related news

Date	Title
16/02/2017	James Allison joins Mercedes as technical director
20/12/2016	Pat Symonds to leave Williams at the end of the year
21/01/2015	2015 launch season kicks off with Force India and Williams
05/01/2015	Williams reorganise race engineering team for 2015
15/12/2014	Steve Nielsen joins Williams as Sporting Manager
13/01/2014	Williams F1 promote and expand engineering department

Date	Title
19/02/2016	Edge of tomorrow

Mentions during live coverage

Date	Update
02/02/2015	Tweet from @adamcooperF1: Pat Symonds says that there are "a number of " ex-Marussia and Caterham people already working at @WilliamsRacing
05/04/2014	During the Friday press conference, Williams' chief technical officer Pat Symonds was asked for his views on this year's engine regulations."I think as a business we ought to focus on the positives and I think that the technology that we’re employing in Formula One now is impressive. The road car industry has to hit CO2 per kilometre targets and those are very difficult targets to meet. And they will have to employ technologies such as we are using in Formula 1. So we are moving things forward, we are more relevant than we used to be and I think that’s very important."I think there was a great danger that we would become irrelevant. We would become the focus of gas-guzzling and not having social responsibility. And I think it was really important that we did move away from that"

Date

Update

02/02/2015

Tweet from @adamcooperF1: Pat Symonds says that there are "a number of " ex-Marussia and Caterham people already working at @WilliamsRacing

05/04/2014

During the Friday press conference, Williams' chief technical officer Pat Symonds was asked for his views on this year's engine regulations."I think as a business we ought to focus on the positives and I think that the technology that we’re employing in Formula One now is impressive. The road car industry has to hit CO2 per kilometre targets and those are very difficult targets to meet. And they will have to employ technologies such as we are using in Formula 1. So we are moving things forward, we are more relevant than we used to be and I think that’s very important."I think there was a great danger that we would become irrelevant. We would become the focus of gas-guzzling and not having social responsibility. And I think it was really important that we did move away from that"

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