NOVEMBER 27, 2003

Williams and Nelsinho

The word on the street in Formula 1 circles is that Williams has made an offer to have Nelson Piquet Jr. on one of its long-term contracts. The young Brazilian, son of former Williams World Champion Nelson Piquet, must now make up his mind if he wants to benefit from Williams's support in exchange for a long-term deal. The usual Williams deal is for five years but the driver involved rarely get paid much, simply enjoying the team's reputation and connections to move up the motor racing ladder.

Piquet is clearly quick but he still seems to be fairly wild and there are some who believe that Keke Rosberg's son Nico is currently a better package.

Both men are due to test for the team shortly and Williams traditionally puts drivers under option before allowing them to test.