Williams spent $3m on staff bonuses last year

Williams spent $3 million on bonuses to its staff at the end of last year, British newspapers report.

The news follows hot on the heels of the Grove based team admitting on Monday it recorded a $50 million financial loss last year, as a result of lower sponsorship and official prize-money as well as higher costs.

But deputy boss Claire Williams insisted the figures should not be used to demonstrate either that the famous team or the sport in general is in trouble.

"These figures do not represent any wider malaise in the sport," she is quoted by the Daily Mail. "It is a product of our performance over the last decade. But we are not quaking in our boots."

Indeed, it is believed Williams’ leap from ninth in the championship to third last year will increase official F1 prize money by a factor of 60 per cent for 2015.

It means that, despite the 2014 loss, Williams was able to pay a $4,500 bonus to each of its 660 staff members at the end of its return to form last year, according to the Times and Telegraph newspapers.

And Claire Williams insisted the team can continue to compete head-to-head with the likes of Ferrari, despite saying in Bahrain that the annual budget is dwarfed by a factor of three compared to the fabled Italian marque.

"It is not how much money you spend - Toyota spent 500 million (pounds) and never won a grand prix – but the shape and structure of your organisation and how efficiently you operate," she said on Monday.