After eight years with Ferrari Felipe Massa will be moving to Williams in 2014. He will race alongside 2013 rookie Valtteri Bottas, which leaves Pastor Maldonado being officially thanked for his services.
The 32-year-old Brazilian has won 11 races and stood on an F1 podium 36 times. On current form he’ll have to be an optimist to hold expectations those stats will receive notable increases during his time with Williams, despite his new team’s past glories.
And you sense Massa is acutely aware of that as well: “With such a major change of regulations in 2014, I hope my experience will be useful in helping the team in its effort to move on from a difficult period.
“I’m highly motivated to start working hard from the very beginning in what is an exciting new challenge in my career.”
Sir Frank Williams has spoken, too: “We are delighted to be able to confirm our 2014 driver line-up and welcome Felipe into the Williams family. He is an exceptional talent and a real fighter on the race track; he also brings a wealth of experience as we begin a new chapter in our story. Valtteri is a valued member of the team and I’m pleased he was able to demonstrate his talent in tricky conditions in Montréal. There is much more to come from him.”
Deputy Team Principal, Claire Williams, has been left to do the heavy lifting in terms of rebuilding team hopes: “This announcement is a key step towards our goal of returning Williams to the front of the grid, and part of our on-going plans to ensure we are stronger in 2014 and beyond. The stability of having both our drivers on multi-year contracts, Mercedes-Benz as our engine partner and a strong commercial base all contribute to the future success of the Williams F1 Team.”
You can read the full Williams F1 Team announcement after the break.
