Apollon-Williams FW03

**Apollon-Williams FW03**
Constructor:	Frank Williams Racing Cars
Designer:	John Clarke ; Giacomo Caliri
Technical specifications
Engine:	Cosworth
Weight:	578 kg
Tires:	Goodyear
statistics
Driver:	Lori's cauldron
First start:	1977 Italian Grand Prix
Last start:	1977 Italian Grand Prix
World Cup points:	-
Podiums:	-
Leadership laps:	-

The Apollon-Williams FW03 (also: Apollon or Apollon FLY ) was a racing car that was entered for two rounds of the Formula 1 World Championship in 1976 and 1977 , but ultimately did not take part in any race. The car was based on the 1974 Williams FW03 . The initiator of the unsuccessful project was the Swiss racing driver Loris Kessel .

background

Loris Kessel drove a number of Formula 1 races for the British team RAM Racing in 1976 . After a legal dispute on the occasion of the German Grand Prix , the connection between Kessels and the racing team ended. There was no other way to get a cockpit in Formula 1. In order to continue his motorsport career, Kessel acquired the Williams FW03 from the British team Frank Williams Racing Cars , which competed in 18 world championship races with eight different drivers in 1974 and 1975 and scored three championship points. Kessel revised the car slightly and, with the financial support of the Jolly Club of Switzerland , reported it to the start again in the Formula 1 World Championship.

technology

The Apollon-Williams corresponded technically and in substance almost completely to the Williams FW03 in the form of the year 1975. In the literature it is pointed out that Kessel had only made some changes to the body, without this being specified in more detail. Some reports cite Giacomo Caliri's FLY studio, founded in 1976, as the originator of the changes; This is why the car is sometimes referred to as the Apollon-FLY. As in the original vehicle, an eight-cylinder naturally aspirated Cosworth engine (type DFV) served as the drive .

Races

Loris Kessel entered the Apollon-Williams for two Italian races.

At the 1976 Italian Grand Prix there was a preliminary entry from Kessel. However, he did not take part in the official training.

In the 1977 Formula 1 season, Kessel tried to compete with the Apollon-Williams at the Grand Prix of Belgium , the Netherlands , France and Austria . In none of these races he did, however. Some sources cite transport problems as the reason for this, others are of the opinion that the car was not yet ready for use at the time.

Ultimately, the first binding notification for the Italian Grand Prix was made for the Jolly Club of Switzerland team . In Monza he took part in training with the three-year-old car. His best lap time was 8.6 seconds above the pole time of James Hunt ( McLaren ). There was not enough time to qualify for the race. As the practice progressed, Kessel went off the track in the Lesmo curve. The car crashed into the lane and was irreparably damaged. Kessel didn't rebuild it.

Race results

driver	No.	1	2	3	4th	5	6th	7th	8th	9	10	11	12	13	14th	15th	16	17th	Points	rank
Automobile World Championship 1977																			0	-
Switzerland L. boiler	41														DNQ				0	-

literature

Adriano Cimarosti: The Century of Racing. Cars, tracks and pilots. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 1997, ISBN 3-613-01848-9 .
Maurice Hamilton: Frank Williams. The inside story of the man behind the Williams-Renault. Macmillan, London 1998, ISBN 0-333-71716-3 .
David Hodges: Racing cars from A – Z after 1945. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart 1994, ISBN 3-613-01477-7 .
David Hodges: A – Z of Grand Prix Cars. Crowood Press, Marlborough 2001, ISBN 1-86126-339-2 (English).
Pierre Ménard: La Grande Encyclopédie de la Formule 1st 2nd edition. Chronosports, St. Sulpice 2000, ISBN 2-940125-45-7 (French).

Web links

Individual evidence

^ ^A ^b David Hodges: A – Z of Grand Prix Cars. 2001, p. 18.
↑ Pierre Ménard: La Grande Encyclopédie de la Formule 1. 2000, p. 597. There it is incorrectly stated that the Apollon-Williams is based on the Williams FW04.
^ History of the Williams FW03 on the website www.oldracingcars.com (accessed October 16, 2013).
↑ Statistics on the Loris Kessels Formula 1 races on the website www.statsf1.com (accessed on October 17, 2013).

[Hodges_UK-1] A ^b David Hodges: A – Z of Grand Prix Cars. 2001, p. 18.

[2] Pierre Ménard: La Grande Encyclopédie de la Formule 1. 2000, p. 597. There it is incorrectly stated that the Apollon-Williams is based on the Williams FW04.

[3] History of the Williams FW03 on the website www.oldracingcars.com (accessed October 16, 2013).

[4] Statistics on the Loris Kessels Formula 1 races on the website www.statsf1.com (accessed on October 17, 2013).