Williams co-founder Patrick Head says that Damon Hill's surprise departure from the British outfit at the end of 1996 was triggered by the F1 world champion's massive financial demands. Hill had secured the world title with Williams in 1996 and was looking to cash in the achievement, advised by his manager who conducted the contract negotiations with Frank Williams for 1997. But the cavalier attitude of Hill's representative at a meeting at Grove and the driver's colossal financial demands put a swift end to the talks. "He [Damon] had a habit of taking on some fairly unusual characters and he took on a sort of manager called Michael Breen," recalled Head, reminiscing on the past...
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