Sergey Sirotkin created a "universal feeling" among those at Williams he was the man to replace Felipe Massa with his performance at the post-season test in Abu Dhabi, technical chief Paddy Lowe has claimed.
The Russian's participation at Yas Marina wasn't particularly highly thought of amid the noise surrounding Robert Kubica and speculation a 2018 deal was close to being agreed, however, that changed when he went faster than the Pole as the two completed identical tests.
Concerns over how suited the former Grand Prix would be to the Pirelli tyres and the much talked about sponsorship Sirotkin brought also swayed the decision in his favour but ultimately, it was his potential which won the argument.
“What was obvious was how calm Sergey was in this moment when he realised he needed to perform,” Lowe said at a Williams-SMP Racing joint event in Moscow last weekend.
“From the first few laps that he did in the car, you could feel the atmosphere in the garage, the engineers were impressed with his times, his feedback, with his precision and he made no mistakes.
"It really was a universal feeling among the engineers that this was the guy we needed in the car."
Speaking at the same event, SMP Racing boss Dmitry Samorukov admitted he and the 22-year-old had worked towards the event in Abu Dhabi and the Williams seat believing it was their best chance at an F1 promotion.
“It's definitely not just that Sergey showed up, set a good time, they spotted him and now he has the seat," he claimed.
Also Read:
And now with the youngest line-up in F1, with Sirotkin and Lance Stroll a combined 41 years old, Lowe believes the former F2 driver is a long-term project.
“We’re very excited about what Sergey can do this year, and even in the many years ahead," the Briton stated.
Lowe has since suggested, however, Kubica, who is now the reserve and developmental driver, could get a chance at a seat in 2019 and that Williams will continue to assess him.
