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Maldonado and Bottas confirmed for Williams

ESPN Staff
November 28, 2012 « Horner - Repeated success makes you unpopular | Senna saw Bottas announcement coming »
Pastor Maldonado will be joined by Valtteri Bottas at Williams in 2013 © Sutton Images
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Williams has confirmed Pastor Maldonado and Valtteri Bottas will be its drivers for the 2013 Formula One season.

The news had been expected for some time, with Bottas stepping up from the reserve driver role to race driver and taking the place of Bruno Senna.

''In Pastor and Valtteri we have two of the most exciting talents in motor racing and I am especially excited about what 2013 can bring for Williams," team principal Sir Frank Williams said. "Pastor has always demonstrated remarkable pace and this year has seen him mature as a racing driver. Valtteri is quite simply one of the most talented young racing drivers I have come across and we expect great things from him in the future. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank our departing driver Bruno Senna for his hard work over the past year and wish him the best of luck going forward.''

Maldonado continues at the team for a third consecutive year and is hoping to build on his first victory at the Spanish Grand Prix earlier this season

''I'm really enjoying my time with Williams and I was obviously very happy when I was told that I would be continuing with the team in 2013. 2012 was a memorable year for me with the win in Barcelona and we made a big step forward in terms of performance. I have a lot of confidence in the team and hopefully next year will see us move even further up the grid and taste more success.''

Bottas has driven in 15 free practice sessions for Williams this year and was the GP3 champion in 2011.

''It has always been my life-long dream to compete in the Formula One World Championship. To do so with one of the most legendary teams in the sport is incredibly special. I've really enjoyed my three years with Williams so far and feel very at home here so my goal was always to stay for 2013 and progress to a race seat. I'm looking forward to getting my Formula One career started and enjoying a lot of success with Williams.''

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