Williams has announced that Jack Aitken will remain its official reserve driver for the 2021 season.

The 25-year-old has been a member of the team since joining last year, making his race debut at the Sakhir Grand Prix standing in for George Russell.

He also took part in an FP1 session at the Red Bull Ring in Austria and undertook development work in the team’s simulator at Grove throughout the season.

Aitken will continue to gain experience both on and off the track this season, and will once again be integrating himself into the trackside team whilst continuing his work in the simulator.

He will take part in a second FP1 session for the team later this season and support the team in media and marketing activities throughout the year as he continues to develop as a race driver.

The British-Korean racer has enjoyed plenty of success in his career thus far, claiming four wins in the Formula 2 Championship. Prior to this, he finished as runner-up in the 2017 GP3 Series, and took both the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 and Formula Renault 2.0 Alps titles in 2015.

"After providing me with one of the most special moments of my career to date last year, I am absolutely delighted to continue with Williams in the position of reserve driver," said Aitken. "In my short time at Grove I have already found many friends, and a deep desire for success as a team.

"The professionalism and work ethic of everyone here is something that makes me wear my kit with pride, and having had a taste of racing in last year’s Sakhir Grand Prix, I am fully intent on providing as much support as possible while continuing my development as a race driver. I will complement this role with other programmes, to be announced shortly, which will aid me in this goal and provide opportunities to expand my skills even further."

"We are pleased to retain Jack for the 2021 season," added Simon Roberts, the Grove outfit's team principal. "He is a great talent and quickly became a much-liked member of the team.

"He really impressed us with his performance at the Sakhir Grand Prix last year in Bahrain, stepping up to the challenge at short notice to put in a strong performance over the course of the weekend. Jack is a talented individual that works incredibly hard, and we look forward to seeing him contribute to the team once again this season."