Renault has officially confirmed that Vitaly Petrov will partner Robert Kubica this season, the 25-year-old thereby becoming the first Russian to race in Formula One.

Runner-up in the 2009 GP2 Series, Petrov is understood to have been offering as much as £13m in order to secure an F1 drive this season and was previously linked with Spanish outfit Campos Meta.

The Russian, who is managed by Willi Weber, is supported by a number of Russian institutions including Moscow-based bank Sberbank and energy giant Gazprom.

"This is a great opportunity for me," said Petrov, "and I'm really looking forward to working with the team this season. I've always dreamed of racing in Formula One and so to make my debut with a top team like Renault is very exciting. The first race is just over a month away so I will make sure I spend as much time as possible with the team over the next few weeks so that I am fully prepared in time for Bahrain."

"This is a very special day for Vitaly and we welcome him into the team," added team principal, Eric Boullier. "As a rookie, we recognise that Vitaly will have a lot to learn this season, but his performances in GP2 last year were outstanding and confirmed that he is ready to make the step up to Formula One. With Robert alongside him, Vitaly has the perfect role model to learn from and I'm confident he will deliver on the promise he has shown throughout his career."