Williams delighted with Fry's arrival: who will follow his lead?

The 59-year-old Briton does not lack experience. He previously held positions at teams such as McLaren, Ferrari and Benetton and will join Williams from 2024. For the next six months, Fry will be forced to sit at home due to the well-known gardening leave, to avoid taking sensitive information from Alpine to his new employer.

Vowles believes Williams is making something of a statement by bringing in Fry. When Autosport.com asks him whether Fry's arrival is going to ensure that more top men dare to make the move to his team, he replies, "In part. But I hope that for a start, when people saw that I left the comfort of Mercedes to go to Williams and now people have seen Pat, at a time where Alpine was in a strong place, people will now understand that Williams wants a culture of change."

Williams is angling for more people from outside

Vowles and Fry have both been active in Formula 1 for an incredibly long time and have great confidence in the Williams project. That enthusiasm must now spill over to other potential personnel so that they are willing to take on the challenge. Convincing 'high-profile' people to do so is not easy, as everyone knows that Williams has invariably been part of the back of the grid in recent years.

That Fry is on the same wavelength as Vowles and dares to do it is a hugely positive step in that direction. "It's more that once you see two very senior people that have been in the sport for 20 plus years and winning races and we want to come here, others will now see why it's worth that journey."