10/06/2006
NEWS STORY
Although it is being claimed, after months of speculation, that WilliamsF1 has signed a deal with Toyota which will see the British team drop its Cosworth engines in favour of the Japanese company's powerplants, technical director Sam Michael is giving nothing away.
Asked to confirm that the deal has been done, the Australian said: "I can't really comment on that. Williams haven't decided what engine we're using in 2007 and it's not something that any decision has been made on and I can't comment on any deals with other manufacturers.
Referring to his team's current engine supplier, Michael added: "Cosworth is doing a fantastic job. Because of the change from V10 to V8, it basically reset the base line for everybody. Although they had two or three problems during the year in the races that we've done so far, I think everybody's had their fair share with new engines.
"So far I would say that they've really done a good job," he continued. "They're a fantastic group of people to work with, really good bunch of engineers, and I think that the latest rules have probably enabled them to get on terms with some big manufacturers, so yeah, they've done well."
Which, using the example of (football) team owners who stand by their manager and claim that all is well, and that rumours of him being dumped are without foundation, appear to indicate that the Toyota contract has indeed been inked.