– In recent days, Williams announced a real coup: the team signed leading figures from the Formula 1 teams of Mercedes and Alpine as well as Piers Thynne from McLaren, who will strengthen the Grove team from August onwards.
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Thynne began his career with a long-standing role as technical project manager at the transmission specialist Xtrac, before moving to McLaren in a similar role in the transmission area at the end of the 2000s and climbing the team hierarchy there.
The Briton was appointed Head of Programme Management in 2012, Head of Programme and Operations Logistics in 2017, Production Manager in 2019, and Operations Manager in 2021, before serving as Chief Operating Officer (COO) during the 2023, 2024, and 2025 seasons.
Thus, Thynne played a key role in McLaren’s resurgence. The team had fought back from a low point in 2017, when they finished only ninth in the constructors’ championship, to the world titles in 2024 and 2025, with Lando Norris securing the drivers’ crown last year.
“Piers has undoubtedly made an important contribution to the successes we have achieved at McLaren,” says team principal Andrea Stella, who himself moved to Woking in 2015 and has worked closely with Thynne ever since.
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“He is a long-serving servant of the McLaren team. He started in 2008, so he was part of various phases. He was very close to me personally and was also instrumental in the team’s development in his role as COO.”
“For me, this is the opportunity to wish Piers all the best for his new experience and new adventure at Williams. I am sure he will be a very important factor there,” Stella continues.
“As for the organization at McLaren, it has actually already evolved, as Piers has held a different role than COO for several months now. So it has no impact on how we have progressed and developed as an organization.”
James Vowles excited
As Stella noted, Thynne moved to the team’s Heritage department at the beginning of the year. This coincided with the period in which he held initial talks with Williams – although it is unclear which of the two events happened first.
“The first talks I had with him probably took place around February,” says Williams team principal James Vowles amid a difficult phase for the Grove outfit. Williams has slipped from fifth to eighth in the constructors’ championship, missed the shakedown in Barcelona, and then appeared with an overweight car.
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“I don’t like to react to events, but for me it was clear that the way we work is still far from a world championship level. I don’t just mean the late car in Barcelona and the weight of the car, but simply the time we need to bring an idea to the track,” says Vowles.
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“That takes far too long. We need someone who brings an understanding at world championship level.” That seems to be Thynne.
“The first talks with him were excellent. He thinks very strategically but at the same time understands the basics of Formula 1 operations. The processes in Formula 1 are a completely different caliber than anything else in the world; it has nothing to do with aerospace,” Vowles continues.
“There are very few things in the world comparable to trying to bring a product to the track within three to four weeks. What I liked about him is his strategic component. He will help us in so many different areas, but he also understands what first-class product delivery looks like.”
Even his father was at Williams
Interestingly, Thynne is following in his father’s footsteps. Sheridan Thynne was commercial director at Williams from 1979 to 1992, until Nigel Mansell’s relationship with the team broke down and Sheridan followed him out the door. When asked if this played a role in Piers’ decision to move to Grove, Vowles replied: “Not really.”
“What he really enjoyed: He did a great job at McLaren and brought the team to a really great point. He loves that part of the journey as much as I do. He wants to be part of bringing this team back to the top.”
“What Piers did very well was building a structure under him that worked independently and well, which gave him the freedom to develop and explore other directions. But McLaren is at a completely different point than we are.”
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The scale of the challenge is illustrated by Williams’ winless streak: Pastor Maldonado’s victory at the 2012 Spanish Grand Prix was the team’s only success in the last two decades – or in other words: in the last 400 Grands Prix.
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