As the Formula One summer break comes to an end, the sound of engines revving and the smell of burning rubber will once again fill the air – with 70,000 spectators trackside and many millions across the globe glued to their screens as the circus gets back on track.

Four out of only 11 outfits worldwide are based right here in our county – earning the Thames region the nickname of Motorsport Valley. And, the legendary team founded by Sir Frank Williams and Sir Patrick Head – the most successful partnership in the sport’s history – was established in a small industrial unit in Didcot in 1977.

With a staff of just 17, Williams Grand Prix Engineering Ltd earned their first win with Australian driver Alan Jones and the family firm has now secured 16 World Championship titles (to date). Monday to Friday, F1 is (big) business, but at the weekend it becomes a sport.

This season’s racing is still wide open and there’s everything to race for – as teammates Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa reacquaint themselves with the FW38 at the legendary Spa-Francorchamps circuit and both qualify in the top 10 on the grid.

The world of F1 is a highly secretive enterprise, but with a laminate around my neck, I have an exclusive behind-the-scenes glimpse at the team’s Grove HQ for the Belgian Grand Prix – 44 laps of the most famous corners in the world at an average speed of 244km/h pulling up to 5g for over two hours,

Pre-race, there’s a live link-up to the pits for a quick team talk with birthday boy Bottas, who tells us “there’s no better place” to spend his 27th celebrations. We also get to try our hand against the clock with changing 7.5kg of magnesium and rubber in a pit stop challenge – achieving an admirable time of 5.97 seconds, but still over four off the pace. Every 1/1000th of a second counts, so much so, that the car’s chassis now has a matt paint job which the technicians recently found brings a marginal aerodynamic advantage.

The green lights drop at 1300 hours and we are racing… with sparks (literally) flying from the very start. As ever, it’s edge-of-the-seat action right through to the chequered flag with a double points finish for Williams Martini Racing. While it’s not enough to bring any (further) silverware home on this occasion there are many memories to treasure and we celebrate nonetheless in the customary fashion with a glass of something sparkly… and look forward to next Sunday.

Hosted by an expert member of the team, race day hospitality at Williams Conference Centre provides a guided insight into a race weekend, including an opportunity to browse their vast treasure trove of over 40 historic racing machines.

For all details visit williamsf1.com.