Belgian Sven Smeets propels Williams to Formula 1 summit

Of course she is proud. Very proud. The now-deceased Grandpa Smeets was the biggest F1 fan in the family, but Grandma Smeets tries to watch every Grand Prix. As GPblog spoke to Smeets during a GP weekend, Sven learned shortly before that grandma had not yet spotted him on the screen. "My grandfather was a GP fanatic, so for her this is kind of special," said the sporting director.

Grandma is a fan of Verstappen AND Williams

"She finds it a bit emotional that grandpa never got to see this [grandson Sven working in F1]. She follows us, she has now also become a fan of Williams. She is a real Verstappen fan, as Max is also from Hasselt. Now she is also a Williams fan. That is very special. It would be great if she could visit here, but she is 94. She has little use for this and on TV they explain it much better!"

The fact that Grandma can admire her grandchild in Formula 1 these days was far from a certainty years ago. In fact, Smeets was on his way to becoming an accountant until he made a successful career as a co-driver in rallying. For years, the Belgian was active in the World Rally Championship (WRC) with Freddy Loix. Once he quit, he found himself in a variety of managerial positions in the sport; first at Citroën and then at Volkswagen. At the latter manufacturer, Smeets worked with Jost Capito, who became CEO of Williams in 2021.

Smeets did not want to say 'no' twice

The German asked Smeets to come to Formula 1 that same year. Not an obvious switch, as Smeets was attached to rallying. Nevertheless, he took the plunge. "This was the only thing I hadn't done yet. And the job he offered me really appealed to me. Everyone knows Williams was the red lantern and the goal is to bring the team back into the midfield, then get on the podium and win Grands Prix."

"There is a long way to go, but the project appealed to me. Everything actually came together in this job. Besides, my wife is British, so for her we could return home after 12 years in Europe. By the way, I already had a chance to work in Formula 1 once. I turned that down then. So I probably wouldn't get a third chance again, so I had to grab it with both hands. And yes, I did."

Williams' all-rounder

Versatile is a word that doesn't even begin to cover it, when you think of the different facets Smeets works on: he is (co-)responsible for the Driver Academy, for setting up and dismantling garages and hospitality areas, logistics, keeps in touch with the FIA and knows the sporting regulations off by heart. He also deals with driver strategy with team boss James Vowles.

It's a role that suits Smeets perfectly: "I like working with these young guys - aged 13 or 14 - until they are maybe ready for Formula 1. This appeals to me enormously," the Belgian explains. "We are now working with two young guys of 13 in karting. What you actually do is create a culture for them. We do that for example with personal trainers and they are at the factory before every race, to sit in the simulator. So making sure that this becomes a job for them."

The Williams team believes it is important that up-and-coming talents do finish school. Smeets says: "There are only twenty seats in Formula 1. It is not a big football league with lots of places and that you could also go from the Netherlands to Belgium. There are 30 cars in F3 and there are 22 cars in F2. How many are going to end up here? Maybe one or two. There are a lot of them who don't go on to become professional racing drivers. So school is very important. Fortunately, most parents agree with that."

Sargeant on the running track

Still, there is some comparison to football, says Smeets. "Talents there spend a lot of time with their team. So do our talents. If we really think they can make it, we ask them to move closer to us and they go and work in our factory for a week or two. They then know, when they break a part, how much time it takes to make a new front wing (laughs). We did that with Logan Sargeant. He has been next to everyone in the factory, people who are never here at the track. It's very important that he also has a connection with the factory. That's all part of it."

It is all part of the internal culture that Williams considers important. Team boss Vowles - who took over from Capito - is someone who is very insistent on that. Smeets sees Williams growing under the Briton's leadership. "There are things he really focuses on, things that need to change faster. He has worked at Mercedes and seen things there. For example, how pit stops are organised there, materials we use."

"Of course certain things could not be changed before, because the financial resources were lacking. We have only had those since Dorilton Capital took over the team. Some things can be done quickly, others can't. And James already saw that we were on the right track. He is also prioritising: first this, then this, then this. James set the big picture. And at Mercedes, he was head of the academy. He delivered a couple of champions. I learn a lot from him, I enjoy working with James."

Changed culture at Williams

Pat Fry also recently joined Williams. The veteran Brit is chief technical officer. "Again someone who has seen different teams from the inside, someone who brings a lot of experience, especially in terms of organisation. I think this is another fantastic move. This is someone who can convince others to come to Williams. Towards the outside world, his appointment is a huge boost; we say we do things, and we do them. No hot air, Williams is really interesting to come to."

With Vowles, Fry and certainly Smeets, a lot has changed within Williams. The latter says: "There is an open culture, where you shouldn't be afraid to say anything. With that, James and I are completely on the same page. Because if people are afraid to do something wrong, you can never win. We all make mistakes, we are human beings. You're going to make mistakes. The important thing is to acknowledge those mistakes and learn from them. That is an important source of success."

"When James came, everyone heard the same story. By the way, that path had already started under Jost. I have also only been here since 2021, but before, people were quite afraid of doing something wrong, so people tried to sweep a lot under the table. Then you don't get anywhere, because you don't learn from your mistakes. And communication is very important. In the past, there were departments that never talked to each other. How can it work if there is never communication? I think the atmosphere is very good. Of course, results always help. And we have booked a few of those," Smeets concludes.

Interview in cooperation with Tim Kraaij