James Vowles

Atlassian Williams Racing team principal with previous at BAR, Honda, Brawn and Mercedes

- Tamara Hinson

I DIDN'T START watching motorsport until the late '80s. It was mainly Formula 1 and Moto GP. I've done some competitive driving but only at a junior level. I did some karting, and whenever there have been opportunities I've taken them – I've done a bit of Formula 3 and Formula Renault. I did it to feel really connected to the drivers, to understand what they're going through.

But to make it as a driver, you need a lot of financial backing and you need to be the best, and I wasn't – it was as simple as that. I wasn't sure what I wanted to do, but I knew that if I couldn't be a driver I wanted to be as close to the action as possible, and I knew I had to be in a world that moves at a very fast pace.