Almost five years after he was thrust into the Formula 1 limelight, Sergey Sirotkin will step up to a race seat with Williams in 2018; Motorsport Week reflects on his path to this stage…
It was mid-2013 when a young, slim, pale, wide-eyed Russian came to the widespread attention of the motorsport community. Sauber, as it entered the financial setbacks which would plague the team for several years, sought a relationship with a group of Russian investors and technology groups, resulting in the then 17-year-old Sirotkin joining the team, and being lined up for a race seat in 2014. At the time, the notion of Sirotkin’s path to Formula 1 being accelerated so rapidly was baffling, for someone so young being fast-tracked to the top had the aura of career-wrecking about it. Sirotkin acquitted himself well with the media at Monza, approaching the situation with humility and eloquence, but ultimately his mooted race seat for 2014 became a test role – a wise move.
Sirotkin remained in Formula Renault 3.5 – switching from ISR to the more-fancied Fortec operation – and improved, but retirements derailed his title prospects, and he wound up fifth. The link, too, with Sauber, was fading; a test run in Bahrain was stymied by ill-fitting shoes (literally, not metaphorically) and though he received a home run during practice in Russia, the emergence of Red Bull-bound Toro Rosso rookie Daniil Kvyat had removed a chunk of the attention from Sirotkin. Sirotkin proclaimed he felt ready for Formula 1 – though no switched-on youngster responds negatively when such a proposal is put to them – but there was little interest, and he quietly slipped away from contention at Sauber.
Sensing a change was required, Sirotkin jumped ship from Formula Renault 3.5 to GP2, joining Rapax, which had carried Pastor Maldonado to the 2010 title, Stefano Coletti to a trio of 2013 wins, but little else of note. With an ostensibly midfield operation, Sirotkin emerged as top rookie, the highlight a dominant victory at Silverstone, where he was imperious. There were few mistakes, and he classified third overall, behind only runaway champion Stoffel Vandoorne and now-IndyCar front-runner and 500 champion Alexander Rossi.
Sirotkin replaced Vandoorne at ART – and also bagged a Renault F1 test role – for 2016, but two critical mistakes at the first two events dealt a blow to his championship aspirations. While chasing victories in Spain and Monaco, having taken pole for the latter, Sirotkin made mistakes. He spun out in Spain and crashed in Monaco. And, as these errors came in Feature Races, it ruined his Sprint Races too. Amid an unpredictable, mixed-up start to a season which gradually became an in-house fight between Prema pair Pierre Gasly and Antonio Giovinazzi, Sirotkin sat on four points, when he could have had 50. Sirotkin, at the time, was inconsolable.
“The start [of the season] is a bit of a joke, I would say," he explained mid-2016. “You would not believe that absolutely every single part of the run goes absolutely against you.”
After Silverstone he sat 11th overall, but rebounded spectacularly, taking back-to-back wins in Hungary and Germany, propelling himself to the top of the standings, and cut a cautious-yet-optimistic figure.
Sirotkin, though, was proved correct with his assertion that the points lead “meant nothing” – just when he was meant to kick-on, the opposite happened. He scored just two points across Belgium and Italy. That was that. Sirotkin finished third – again – after a frustratingly perplexing season, displaying supreme pace and potential at times, and making inexplicable mistakes or being off-colour at others. It proved why thrusting him into a Formula 1 seat for 2014 would have been a massive gamble. And, with how Sauber’s campaign turned out, probably career-wrecking.
Aside from a Le Mans outing and Formula 2 run as a late stand-in, Sirotkin spent 2017 on the sidelines, focusing on his role as Renault’s reserve driver, receiving four FP1 runs and test outings, while away from the spotlight he amassed substantial mileage in private sessions in Renault’s 2012-spec E20 at Valencia. Having found the non-racing role tougher than anticipated, Sirotkin and his backers naturally explored 2018 options, though any lingering Renault aspirations were extinguished when Carlos Sainz Jr. was prised to partner Nico Hulkenberg.
The test with Williams, next to Robert Kubica, proved crucial, and Sirotkin now has his opportunity to shine on a global stage. Undoubtedly, he faces a challenge: Williams has slipped down the order in recent years, a situation which could be accentuated by expected McLaren and Renault progress this year. Sirotkin will be the least experienced driver on the Formula 1 grid, has had the least time to assimilate with his new surroundings, and will line up alongside another relatively inexperienced pilot, who in turn had a sketchy rookie campaign. There are also the finances to consider, for if Williams’ decision was purely performance based, it would not have prolonged its selection process; such economic backing is a blessing and a curse in equal measure. Consequently, fully assessing the exploits of Sirotkin – and, as a result, Williams – will be challenging, when the goalposts are not so much moving but scattered around.
It will, therefore, be a rollercoaster ride – but that merely follows in line with Sirotkin’s junior career. He now has a ticket to ride – and has to grab the opportunity with both hands.
