Sergey Sirotkin angry over ‘pay driver’ tag

Sergey Sirotkin has said he has paid "no attention" to the claim that he is just a pay driver at Williams and questioned where the media get their information from.

Sirotkin was eventually named as the driver to line-up alongside Lance Stroll for the 2018 season after a long search by Williams.

The Russian has signed a 'multi-year' contract with the team, but many have questioned Williams' motives after learning that Sirotkin is backed by a significant sponsor in SMP bank and a figure of around £15million has helped him land the seat ahead of Robert Kubica.

But, when asked about the criticism, Sirotkin was less than impressed about what is being said about him.

"I do not pay attention to names like 'pay driver'," Sirotkin told Russian radio Sport FM.

"People write things but where do they get the information from? If you know something and can confirm it with facts, then please do."

Sirotkin also had his say on Formula 1's decision to ban grid girls ahead of the upcoming season.

“当你坐在网格,你不是thinking about the girls," he said.

"If I had not been told about this news then I would not have even noticed. I can understand the position of both the opponents and the supporters of this decision.

"But I look at it from the professional point of view that it does not affect the drivers in any way,"