FORMULA 1
THROUGH THE YEARS

Mission Makers are joined this week by one of  Formula 1’s most prized journalists and former Williams and Ferrari manager, Peter Windsor. In this episode we discover how a chance encounter with the legendary racing driver Jim Clarke changed his life and catapulted his career into the sport, as well as his experiences of working with several notable figures from Sir Frank Williams to Nigel Mansell. Peter also goes on to share his thoughts on the current driver formation for the upcoming F1 season and how the sport can navigate the Covid-19 pandemic in the long term.

 

When visiting Peter’s official website, you are greeted with the following quote, “chance doesn't exist; there's always a cause and a reason for everything.” At first glance such a quote could be perceived as merely inspirational however as Mission Makers would go on to find out, those words are more than just motivational in nature. In fact, those words have served as the foundation to one of the most accomplished careers in motorsport.

 

Born in the UK but raised in Australia, Peter admits that during the early years he was starved of much motorsports action. Not that this dissuaded him from pursuing his dream because as he goes on to tell us, “for me there was no other choice.” Peter’s dedication and hunger saw him get his first article published at the tender age of 14 and the rest as they say is history. Peter has since gone on to win five international awards for his writing, including Sports Reporter of the Year and Feature Writer of the Year. 

 

Peter has on several occasions taken his passion for motorsport far beyond journalism. In the late 80’s Peter diversified into F1 driver and team management, which saw him at the helms of the dynamics between drivers such as Keke Rosberg and Nigel Mansell. When speaking of those times Peter says, “it was like being in the army.” Despite the challenges, Peter admits that he learnt a great deal during this time, particularly around work ethic through Sir Frank Williams.

 

Despite an enviable career Peter admits that he hasn’t always got everything right. In typical fashion Peter has used those moments as a source of inspiration, “every time you fail you learn something,” he says. More broadly though you get the sense when speaking to Peter that he values the ability to do things his own way above any achievement. Looking back on his remarkable yet idiosyncratic career I think it is fair to say that he has managed to do just that.

 

The full conversation with Peter can be found on the video below and on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. 

 

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