It’s a shame Martini is such a horrible, horrible drink – because it really does make for a fantastic racing livery.

Okay, so this isn’t as good as some of the mockups that have been kicking around – but it was probably never going to be. It’s also a heck of a sight better than that faked photoshop that was purported a few weeks back, so that’s something.

 You might think us hypocritical for loving this, while hating the similar white-simplicity of, say, the 2011 Sauber. But what this gets right is that it has a hugely iconic design element (applied in an understated way), and the rest of the sponsors (if a little threadbare in places) are applied in a consistent and non-clashy way. If this didn’t have the Martini stripes, it’d be dull. If it had multi-coloured clashing sponsor logos (like that Sauber), it’d be a mess. As it is, though, it’s tidy and smart, but also has that touch of flashy excitement (as flashy or exciting as Williams will ever get, anyway).

Certainly, in another year that’s been less-than-vintage livery-wise, this is the outstanding contender by a country margin. And if pre-season testing is right and it goes like the clappers on the track, too, then that’ll be even better.

An intriguing tweet from journo Will Buxton, meanwhile, suggests it won’t be the only livery the team use this year, either:

Williams will have three or more separate liveries this season. Martini lines considered part of brand, so livery will change per country.

— Will Buxton (@wbuxtonofficial) March 6, 2014

Let’s just hope they do something more imaginative in the alcohol-dry countries than simply taking the stripes off, though…

---