Williams Martini Racing has announced that Polish driver Robert Kubica will drive for the team during the post Abu Dhabi Grand Prix two-day test.
Kubica, 32, will drive the team’s FW40 chassis in the morning session of day one and in the late afternoon of the second day of the test, due to be held on Tuesday and Wednesday next week.
The remaining driving duties will be shared between regular race driver, Canadian rookie Lance Stroll and Russian driver Sergey Sirotkin.
Sergey Sirotkin will drive the FW40 on the second day of the test.
Credit: Octane Photographic
Stroll will be at the wheel for the afternoon session of the first day of the test, while Sirotkin will drive in the morning and early afternoon of the second day, before handing over to Kubica.
The focus on the test will be “aimed at evaluating 2018 candidate tyres on behalf of the Formula 1 tyre supplier, Pirelli,” said the team.
“Williams is excited to have this opportunity to assess the new tyres across such an interesting range of drivers. Lance, as confirmed as a race driver for 2018, Robert with his huge experience and Sergey as a very promising young talent in Formula 1,” said the team in a statement.
Test key to Kubica comeback
2008 Canadian Grand Prix winner Kubica is in the frame for a full-time race seat in ’18, seven years after his F1 was seemingly ended by a rally accident.
Renault Sport Formula 1 Team ran him in the post Hungarian Grand Prix test and he has also driven the 2014 Williams car, alongside Paul di Resta, in a series of tests to determine who will partner Stroll for next season, after Felipe Massa announced his retirement.
Having driven a contemporary F1 car in the Budapest test, Williams want to continue to evaluate Kubica in its own ’17 car before making a final decision about whether to offer the Pole a deal.
