there are people more able to explain this than me, but boris rotenberg and his brother are on the us sanctions list. they're big chiefs of smp which is a bank, and thus, smp racing. this link -
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-26672800 - has a little about them.
it could get sticky for f1 if putin's "pet projects" that the rotenbergs are involved in include the sochi arrangement. but on the other hand, moscow raceway isn't one of those projects and i can't think who would be involved in the wsbk event as a "partner company"?
edited with more info:
"Arkady Rotenberg and Boris Rotenberg have provided support to Putin’s pet projects by receiving and executing high price contracts for the Sochi Olympic Games and state-controlled Gazprom. They have made billions of dollars in contracts for Gazprom and the Sochi Winter Olympics awarded to them by Putin. Both brothers have amassed enormous amounts of wealth during the years of Putin’s rule in Russia. The Rotenberg brothers received approximately $7 billion in contracts for the Sochi Olympic Games and their personal wealth has increased by $2.5 billion in the last two years alone."
source:
http://www.treasury.gov/press-center...s/jl23331.aspx
interestingly, this here from reuters says that mastercard and visa were asked to reinstate payment systems to smp bank because the sanctions were imposed on the shareholders and not the bank :
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/...0MK0CZ20140323
i suppose that tells you something about the relationship smp racing has to the rotenbergs.