SEPANG, Malaysia - After a quiet winter for the experienced 32-year-old Adrian Sutil he must have thoughts his Formula 1 dreams had been put on hold, but now it has changed completely.
Some Le Mans rumours and a low-profile legal dispute with Sauber aside, little had been heard from Sutil since the German's 2015 contract was not honoured by the struggling Swiss team. However, on Thursday (March 26), British outfit Williams announced it had signed the veteran of more than 100 grands prix as its new reserve driver.
OFFICIAL RESERVE
Williams had admitted in Australia two weeks earlier that the team had no official reserve on its books. When Valtteri Bottas was hurt and despite early speculation that tester Susie Wolff might get the nod, it was believed Mercedes' Pascal Wehrlein was put on stand-by for Malaysia.
Bottas has recovered but it was at Sepang, scene of Sunday's F1 GP, that Williams announced Sutil as official reserve. The German then strolled into the hot Malaysian paddock wearing team gear and had a seat fitting in Bottas' cockpit.