Williams have confirmed that Rob Smedley will reunite with Felipe Massa after joining the team as Head of Vehicle Performance.
Smedley worked with Massa at Ferrari as race engineer and his new role means the pair won’t be working as closely together.
Williams have described his new role as “a newly-created position which will strengthen the trackside team whilst also supporting the development work back at the factory to help bring more performance to the car throughout the season.”
He will begin his work with the team in April and will work alongside engineers Andrew Murdoch and Jonathan Eddolls.
Smedley first worked with Massa during the 2006 season and they forged one of the most familiar relationships in the sport. The 40-year-old will now link up with Massa, after the Brazilian joined Williams in November after eight seasons with the Scuderia.
Commenting on the new line-up, Pat Symonds, Chief Technical Officer, said:
“Williams is undergoing change and these new appointments reflect how high our ambitions are. We have a number of senior people joining us to assist us in the pursuit of those ambitions and I am extremely excited to welcome them on-board.
“2014 gives us the biggest change to the technical regulations that I have seen in my career, and so it will be important to add further depth to the talent we already have here as we head into the new season.
“Williams has always prided itself on engineering excellence and this latest announcement is part of our continued goal to bring success back to the team.”
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