Peter Williams (27 August 1939 – 20 December 2020) was a British former professional motorcycle racer and engineer. He competed in Grand Prix motorcycle road racing from to as well as in British short-circuit races. The son of Jack Williams who led the Associated Motor Cycles (AMC) racing department, Williams encompassed a rare combination of talents as a proficient motorcycle racer as well as an innovative motorcycle designer. Trained in mechanical engineering, Williams was modest and soft-spoken with a studious appearance that was the antithesis of a stereotypical motorcycle racer. He pioneered the use of alloy wheels and disc brakes in motorcycle racing and was one of the first motorcycle racers to adopt the full-face helmet.
The highpoint of Williams' career came in 1973 when he won the Isle of Man Formula 750 TT race riding a motorcycle of his own design. Williams was notable for his dedication to riding the underpowered, single-cylinder Matchless G50 motorcycle on which he placed second in the Isle of Man Senior TT four times, most frequently to Giacomo Agostini and his powerful MV Agusta. After he was seriously injured in a race in 1974, he retired from competition and continued his engineering career with Cosworth and Lotus Cars.
Riding career Early life Williams was born in Nottingham, England, as the son of Jack Williams, the head of the AMC race department. His father was involved in the development of the World Championship winning AJS Porcupine and then the AJS 7R and Matchless G50. After training as a draughtsman, Williams worked in the drawing office at the Ford Dagenham factory. As his father had discouraged him from motorcycle racing, Williams did not begin to compete on British race circuits until he was 24 years old. He rose to prominence in 1964 when he shared an AJS model 14 CSR motorcycle with Tony Wood to win the 250 cc class at the 1964 Thruxton 500 endurance race.Motor Cycle, 25 June 1964. p.122 Thruxton 500 race report and result and p.7a Associated Motor Cycles full page factory advertisement "250cc class. 1st AJS 14 CSR. Riders: Peter Williams and Tony Wood. Entered by: Arter Bros Ltd." Accessed 2014-01-21 He was easily recognized by the large letter W painted on the front of his helmet, a logo that he used for his entire racing career.
Williams rode a 350 cc Norton Manx motorcycle in the Junior TT at the 1964 Manx Grand Prix but failed to finish the race.Motor Cycle, 27 August 1964. Manx Grand Prix Entry List Accessed 2013-06-28 In the 250 cc Class, he scored a third place finish on a Greeves Silverstone. His performance earned him a job offer to join the Greeves factory as draughtsman where he helped develop a water-cooled 250 cc Greeves road racer.
In , Williams entered his first Senior TT during the Isle of Man TT races riding a 500 cc Dunstall Norton but was forced to abandon the race while lying in third place due to an engine failure.Motor Cycle, 16 September 1965. Manx Grand Prix, Senior Race report and Lightweight Results Accessed 2013-06-28Motor Cycle, 23 September 1965. Scarborough road race report. "500 cc Race results, Second, P.J.Williams (Dunstall Dominator)". Accessed and added 2014-10-22Motor Cycle, 9 September 1965. Manx grand Prix Practising Accessed 2013-06-28 In the 1965 Lightweight TT, he scored a third place result riding an Orpin Greeves Silverstone. Williams began an eight-year collaboration in 1965 with motorcycle designer and tuner, Tom Arter riding a 350 cc AJS built by John Surtees as well as a Matchless G50.
Tom Arter collaboration Williams won the 1966 North West 200 riding a Matchless G50 then rode an AJS 7R to a second-place finish behind Giacomo Agostini (MV Agusta) in the Junior TT race at the 1966 Isle of Man TT. Official NW200 Results 1966 Results Retrieved 2013-06-02 He scored the first podium result of his career when he rode a Tom Arter prepared Matchless G50 to finish in second place behind Agostini at the 500 cc Nations Grand Prix held at the Monza Circuit. By 1966, AMC fell into receivership and eventually became a part of Norton-Villiers, who would take over the BSA motorcycle factory a few years later.
In early 1967, Williams marketed an engineering solution to enable a proprietary disc brake assembly produced and merchandised by Rickman Motorcycles to be fitted to Norton Manx and AJS 7R/Matchless G50 racing machines.Racing Line by David Dixon The Motor Cycle, 9 March 1967, pp.302-303. Accessed 15 January 2021 Also in 1967, Williams and Arter began work on a motorcycle to replace their Matchless G50 using a prototype, twin-cylinder 500 cc Weslake engine, a project that would be abandoned due to financial constraints.Four valves per cylinder www.sintich.com Retrieved 2013-06-01
For the Grand Prix season, Williams and Arter decided to campaign their single-cylinder Matchless G50 in a full season of World Championship competition against the MV Agusta and Honda factory teams and their powerful multi-cylinder machines. Agostini won the opening round in Germany while Mike Hailwood's Honda broke down, allowing Williams to claim second place. At the 1967 Isle of Man TT, Hailwood claimed a thrilling victory after Agostini's machine broke its drive chain on the final lap, letting Williams claim another fortuitous second place. At the third round at Assen, Hailwood and Agostini came first and second, with Williams in third place, so after the first three rounds of the season he was the championship points leader as a privateer racer on a motorcycle considered to be obsolete. He severely injured his ankle while competing in the 350 cc East German Grand Prix and was forced to withdraw from the remainder of the season. He ended the season ranked fourth in the 500 cc Class which marked the best result of his World Championship racing career.
Mike Hailwood had arranged for Williams to join him on the Honda team for the 1968 season, but then the FIM implemented new rules limiting all gearboxes to six-speeds, 125cc and 250cc motorcycles to no more than two cylinders, and 350cc and 500cc motorcycles to four cylinders.50 Years Of Moto Grand Prix. (1999)(1st Ed). Hazelton Publishing Ltd. The new rules favored two-stroke engines over four-stroke engines in the smaller displacement classes, and since the Honda factory had a company policy to race only four-stroke motorcycles, they decided to withdraw from motorcycle racing to concentrate on Formula 1 racing. Honda's departure left the MV Agusta factory as the only major manufacturer to field a racing team in the World Championships. After rejecting an offer to race an all-British Read-Weslake 500GP twin, Williams returned to race the Tom Arter Matchless G50 for the season.
At the 1968 Daytona 200, Williams rode the underpowered Matchless G50 against larger and more powerful 750 cc motorcycles to finish in 8th place. He placed fourth at the 1968 Dutch TT along with a fifth place in Czechoslovakia to end the season ranked sixth in the 1968 500 cc World Championship standings.
After the collapse of AJS, Williams joined the Norton-Villiers Drawing Office in 1969.Motorcycle Mechanics, October 1969, p.22 Full Chat by John Day. "The cast-magnesium wheels which Peter Williams is developing and which he tested for the first time at the Hutchinson 100, suggest that he will have any number of new and revolutionary ideas to impart in his new job as project engineer with Norton Villiers" Accessed 2014-02-09 He suffered from chronic asthma which forced him to miss the 1969 Isle of Man TT, but returned to competition at the Dutch TT where he led the first two laps on the single-cylinder Matchless before Agostini and the MV Agusta 500 Three caught and passed him to take the lead and eventual victory with Williams finishing in second place. The Arter-Matchless motorcycle was then loaned to Jack Findlay who destroyed it one week later in a crash while competing in the 500 cc Belgian Grand Prix.
Findlay's crash gave Arter and Williams the opportunity to rebuild the Matchless motorcycle using a lighter, slimmer frame made from narrower-gauge tubing by Formula One chassis constructors Grand Prix Metalcraft. The lightweight chassis also benefitted from a slim, wind-cheating bodywork and was one of the first racing motorcycles to feature hydraulic disc brakes. The motorcycle was also the first to utilise six-spoke, solid-cast Elektron alloy wheels, which were designed by Williams himself at a time when wire-spoked wheels were considered the standard.Motorcycle Mechanics, February 1968, Full Chat by John Day: "On Tom Arter's AJS and Matchless specials, he will set a new style, for one of his machines will be fitted with wheels built with only six spokes. They will be one-piece cast magnesium units similar to those fitted to racing cars. One might imagine that such bulky looking "cart" wheels would be heavy... Peter will fit them to his 500, which will also have disc brakes front and rear." Accessed 2013-07-20 The motorcycle was dubbed "cart wheels" and "artillery wheels" by British motorsport journalists due to its distinctive wheels.Motorcycle Sport, July 1979, p.350 Wheels and Wheels by Ted Davis (ex-Vincent Chief Tester) "After 100 years we are back to 'artillery' wheels". Accessed and added 2014-06-23
Williams and Arter developed and modified the Matchless G50 into a proficient racing machine that extended the competitive life of the four-stroke single-cylinder engine during an era dominated by two-stroke engines.Motorcyclist Illustrated, April 1968, p.48 Arter Bros advert Arter Bros. Ltd. AJS - Francis Barnett - Matchless - Greeves Dover Road, Barham, Kent Tel. Barham 356. Accessed and added 2015-03-11 By 1969, the era of domination by British single-cylinder engines was over; however, their use of lightweight material and aerodynamics allowed the underpowered yet agile Matchless G50 compete with Agostini's more powerful MV Agusta.
Williams won the 1970 North West 200 500cc race and once again finished second to Agostini in the 1970 Senior TT on the Arter Matchless Special. He then led the massed-start 750 cc class Production TT race on a Norton Commando when he ran out of petrol just yards from the finish line allowing Malcolm Uphill (Triumph) to pass him for the victory. He entered other larger-capacity races on Norton Commando twins, teaming with Charley Sanby to win the 1970 Thruxton 500 endurance race. Southampton & District Motor Cycle Club. Official Site. Race result 1969. Retrieved 2013-08-15 Williams and the Arter-Matchless won the 1970 British 500cc Championship after a season-long battle with Alan Barnett riding a Colin Seeley-prepared Matchless G50.
Williams repeated his second-place finish behind Agostini aboard the Arter Matchless at the 1971 Isle of Man TT, and placed third in the Formula 1 750cc TT on a Norton Commando behind Tony Jefferies (Triumph) and Ray Pickrell (BSA). Williams won his only world championship race in riding an MZ to win the 350 cc Ulster Grand Prix. He placed second on his Norton behind Pickrell (Triumph) in the 1972 Formula 1 750cc TT. At the 1972 Hutchinson 100 held at the tight and technical Brands Hatch circuit, Williams used the Matchless' lightweight and agility to catch and pass Agostini’s MV Agusta triple, as the reigning World Champion then crashed while pursuing Williams.
John Player Norton