Bottas Eyes Cadillac Seat in 2026 After Mercedes Reserve Role
Dec.20 - Valtteri Bottas intends to use his new job at Mercedes as a launching pad to return to the Formula 1 grid. The team has confirmed the widespread rumours by announcing..
Name | Valtteri Bottas |
Country | Finland |
Height | 1.72 meter / 5 feet 8 inch |
Place of Birth | Nastola |
Date of Birth | Aug 28th 1989 - 35 years old |
Season Entries | 12 |
Car Number | 77 |
First Race | 2013 Australian F1 GP |
Last Race | 2024 Abu Dhabi F1 GP |
First Pole | 2017 Bahrain F1 GP |
Last Pole | 2021 Brazilian F1 GP |
First Win | 2017 Russian F1 GP |
Last Win | 2021 Turkish F1 GP |
First Win from Pole | 2017 Austrian F1 GP |
Last Win from Pole | 2021 Turkish F1 GP |
First Hat-trick | 2017 Abu Dhabi F1 GP |
Last Hat-trick | 2021 Turkish F1 GP |
F1 Teams History | Williams (2013-2016) Mercedes (2017-2021) Alfa Romeo (2022-2023) Sauber (2024) |
Valtteri Bottas F1 Stats | |
Grand Prix Entries | 247 |
Grand Prix Starts | 246 |
Total Points | 1797.00 |
Avg. Points per GP | 7.28 |
Grand Prix Wins | 10 (4,0%) |
Wins from pole | 6 (2,4%) |
Pole Positions | 20 (8,1%) |
Front Row Starts | 46 (18,6%) |
Avg. GP Grid | 8.0 |
GP Podiums | 67 (27,1%) |
GP Fastest Laps | 19 (7,7%) |
GP Points Finish | 145 (58,7%) |
Avg. GP Position | 7.9 |
Hat-tricks | 2 (0,8%) |
GP Retirements | 29 (11,7%) |
GP DNF's | 25 (10,1%) |
Total GP Laps | 13.863 |
After a super 2014, Valtteri Bottas underlined his potential as as a future world champion with an impressive year in 2015.
Bottas scored six podiums in 2014, while his highly-regarded team-mate, Felipe Massa, scored just three.
Last season he added two more to his collection, and held off Massa to secure fifth in the championship.
Bottas is quick, clever, composed and consistent. No wonder bigger teams are interested in his services.
When the Finn arrived in 2013 he was expected to do well, but Williams struggled and provided him with an awful car.
Bottas had a dismal year but his stock remained high, thanks, in part, to his stellar junior career.
Like many of the young drivers in recent years, the 25-year-old has a strong junior CV. Two championships in Formula Renault and a GP3 world title in 2011 can’t disguise his potential.
That GP3 season caught the eye of the legendary Sir Frank Williams, and Bottas was quickly signed as the team’s reserve driver.
After one season in that role, he was promoted to race alongside Pastor Maldonado. The Venezuelan had the better of Bottas in 2013, but it was he who left the team at the end of that season.
The 2014 F1 season was a good one for Bottas. He scored 6 podium's for Williams, finished 4th in the drivers championship and defeated his highly profiled new team mate Felipe Massa, who had to make room at Ferrari.
Next season the Williams still was fast compared to the competition Ferrari and Red Bull. Bottas agains scored some podiums and outrun his team mate again to finish 5th in the drivers championship. The top teams look to have interested in him. But maybe his low profile kind of character is why the top teams don't contract him.
With seats at big teams possibly opening up for 2016, Bottas is at the front of the queue. Another fine season would all but confirm his progress up the grid. The Williams is now clearly beaten by Red Bull, Ferrari and even Force India is faster this season. The Fin had an ok 2016 F1 season at Williams. He took a podium in Canada and scored 32 more points then his teammate Felipe. He outscored him for the 3rd consecutive time.
After Nico Rosberg won the 2016 F1 drivers champioship , he annouced his F1 exit a few days after he won the last F1 race of the season for Mercedes, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
His exit was a complete surprise for the Mercedes F1 team an it's said that all the F1 drivers where knocking on Mercedes their door to get the hot seat.
Names like Fernando Alonso whose adventure at McLaren was again becoming a difficult story, were named next to Pascal Wehrlein and Valtteri Bottas on the shortlist of the silver arrow team.
Mercedes chose Bottas, who used to be managed by team principal Toto Wolff at Williams.
It was going to be very interesting to see him perform next to 3 times World Champion Lewis Hamilton during the 2017 F1 season.
Would he be able to beat him or not, that would be interesting fact to see.
Valtteri Bottas had an interesting 2017 F1 season. He wasn't able to beat his teammate in every race, but he did score 3 victories, 4 poles and a total of 13 podiums. He got stronger as the season evolved and finished the season with a win at Abu Dhabi.
When you look at the teammate comparison tab, the first thing you will notice is that Hamilton outperformed the Finnish driver in every way in 2017. However, Bottas was adapting to Mercedes.
In 2018, he had a really difficult season at Mercedes. In the first half of the season, he was quick enough to deserve at least two victories, but bad luck played against him at China, with a Safety Car that put his lead in risk and a puncture at Baku after he was leading entering the last two laps. Bottas did not win a single race in 2018, although he was leading in Russia when he received the order to let his teammate, who was fighting for the title, pass and take the win.
For the current season, there was much speculation about Bottas' improvements and his new approach for the season. His year started well with victories at Australia and Azerbaijan and two Pole Positions in the first four races of the year. From his win at Baku onwards, he has not won a race. He scored stunning Pole Positions at Spain and Silverstone, but he could not convert those into race victories.
The last two races before the summer break were his worst of the season. He crashed out of the German Grand Prix after having a golden opportunity to take points off Hamilton's lead in the title fight, and then finished eight at Hungary after starting in the front row. An error-prone start of the race at Budapest and a touch from Charles Leclerc's Ferrari in the first lap damaged his chances in that GP.
After falling 62 points behind Hamilton in the title fight and with Max Verstappen just eight points behind in the championship, Bottas' seat at Mercedes was in danger after the summer break. The team manager, Wolff, said that the decision would be made in August and that two drivers were options for the seat, Bottas and Esteban Ocon.
On the 29th of August, Bottas was confirmed for 2020 at Mercedes. In the first five races of the second half of the season, Bottas scored four podiums. In the 2019 Japanese Grand Prix, Bottas took his third win of 2019 and the sixth of his career with a solid drive after starting from third on the grid.
With his win at Suzuka and Hamilton's third place, Bottas helped Mercedes secure their sixth straight World Constructors' Championship. Also, the result determined only a Mercedes driver could win the 2019 Drivers' championship.
In the following race at the 2019 Mexican Grand Prix, Bottas crashed on his second run in Q3 and started the race in sixth. However, a solid Sunday drive helped him reach third place and keep his slim title hopes alive. In the 2019 United States Grand Prix, Bottas started from Pole Position and won his seventh F1 race after a late overtake on his teammate Hamilton, who secured the championship with a second place.
In the final two races of the year, Brazil and Abu Dhabi, he had engine problems. He retired in Brazil with an engine blowout which was prompted by an oil consumption-related issue. He had to start the last race from the last place due to grid penalties for exceeding Power Unit elements and finished fourth after he could not overtake Leclerc for third.
He finished his best year in F1 with 326 points and second place in the WDC. He won four races during the year, reached the podium 15 times (career-high), and started from Pole Position five times.
For the second-straight season, Bottas won the inaugural race of the F1 calendar. This time, he won the 2020 Austrian Grand Prix from Pole Position to reach an early lead in the World Drivers' Championship. However, Bottas won his second race of the year in the 10th round, the 2020 Russian Grand Prix, after polesitter Lewis Hamilton received two five-second penalties for doing practise starts in a forbidden place.
Bottas again could not beat Hamilton to the World Drivers' Championship in 2020, even after his great start.
In the final races of 2020, Bottas struggled with bad luck and his own performances. He ended the year second in the WDC, with two victories and five Pole Positions.
Valtteri Bottas had his final year as a Mercedes driver in 2021, before being replaced by George Russell. The Finnish racer completed a year with ups and downs, bad luck, and some bad driving on his part in third place in the WDC.
Bottas struggled with a W12 car that was unstable most of the time, but he managed to win the 2021 Turkish Grand Prix after inheriting Pole Position due to a penalty to his teammate Lewis Hamilton. That was the 10th win of his career.
On 6 September 2021, it was announced that Bottas was set to leave Mercedes and join Alfa Romeo in 2022 on a multi-year deal.
Alfa Romeo's challenger for the start of F1's new era in 2022 was a good one, and Valtteri Bottas gave it good use in the early stages of the season.
Bottas scored points in six of the first seven races of 2022 and kept the team in the Top 5 in the standings of the World Constructors' Championship.
Ultimately, Bottas finished the campaign with 49 points and in 10th place in the World Drivers' Championship. Alfa Romeo ended the year in sixth place in the Constructors' standings, its best result since returning to F1 in 2019.
The 2023 Formula 1 season was difficult for Alfa Romeo, and the brand ended up departing Formula 1, ending its partnership with Sauber.
Bottas was still the team's best performer, scoring 10 of the brand's 16 points and helping the team get out of the final place in the standings.
The best race for the Finnish driver in the 2023 F1 campaign came in the first event in Bahrain, with an eighth place that was replicated at Qatar later in the year.
Race career achievements
Official Valtteri Bottas website: https://valtteribottas.com/
2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
17th | 4th | 5th | 8th | 3rd | 5th | 2nd | 2nd | 3rd | 10th | 15th | 24th |
Year | Team | Engine | GP | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Pod | Pole | Laps | FL | Avg Pts | Points |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2024 | Sauber | Ferrari | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1360 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 |
2023 | Alfa Romeo | Ferrari | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1229 | 0 | 0.45 | 10 |
2022 | Alfa Romeo | Ferrari | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1137 | 0 | 2.23 | 49 |
2021 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 22 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 11 | 4 | 1134 | 4 | 10.27 | 226 |
2020 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 17 | 2 | 6 | 3 | 11 | 5 | 994 | 2 | 13.12 | 223 |
2019 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 21 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 15 | 5 | 1233 | 3 | 15.52 | 326 |
2018 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 21 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 8 | 2 | 1202 | 7 | 11.76 | 247 |
2017 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 20 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 13 | 4 | 1171 | 2 | 15.25 | 305 |
2016 | Williams | Mercedes | 21 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1186 | 0 | 4.05 | 85 |
2015 | Williams | Mercedes | 18 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1037 | 0 | 7.56 | 136 |
2014 | Williams | Mercedes | 19 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 1110 | 1 | 9.79 | 186 |
2013 | Williams | Renault | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1070 | 0 | 0.21 | 4 |
1st | 10 Times |
2nd | 29 Times |
3rd | 28 Times |
4th | 13 Times |
5th | 24 Times |
6th | 9 Times |
7th | 5 Times |
8th | 14 Times |
9th | 7 Times |
10th | 6 Times |
11th | 10 Times |
12th | 10 Times |
13th | 10 Times |
14th | 12 Times |
15th | 10 Times |
16th | 11 Times |
17th | 4 Times |
18th | 4 Times |
19th | 4 Times |
20th | 1 Time |
DNF | 25 Times |
DNS | 1 Time |
Year | Race | No | Team | Engine | Grid | Pos | Retired | Pts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
10 | 2021 | 2021 Turkish F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 1 | 26 | |
9 | 2020 | 2020 Russian F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 3 | 1 | 26 | |
8 | 2020 | 2020 Austrian F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 1 | 25 | |
7 | 2019 | 2019 USA F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 1 | 25 | |
6 | 2019 | 2019 Japanese F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 3 | 1 | 25 | |
5 | 2019 | 2019 Azerbaijan F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 1 | 25 | |
4 | 2019 | 2019 Australian F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 2 | 1 | 26 | |
3 | 2017 | 2017 Abu Dhabi F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 1 | 25 | |
2 | 2017 | 2017 Austrian F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 1 | 25 | |
1 | 2017 | 2017 Russian F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 3 | 1 | 25 |
Year | Race | No | Team | Engine | Grid | Pos | Retired | Pts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
20 | 2021 | 2021 Brazilian F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 3 | 18 | |
19 | 2021 | 2021 Mexico F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 15 | 0 | |
18 | 2021 | 2021 Turkish F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 1 | 26 | |
17 | 2021 | 2021 Portuguese F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 3 | 16 | |
16 | 2020 | 2020 Sakhir F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 8 | 4 | |
15 | 2020 | 2020 E. Romagna F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 2 | 18 | |
14 | 2020 | 2020 Eifel F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | DNF | Power Unit | 0 |
13 | 2020 | 70th Anniversary F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 3 | 15 | |
12 | 2020 | 2020 Austrian F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 1 | 25 | |
11 | 2019 | 2019 USA F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 1 | 25 | |
10 | 2019 | 2019 British F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 2 | 18 | |
9 | 2019 | 2019 Spanish F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 2 | 18 | |
8 | 2019 | 2019 Azerbaijan F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 1 | 25 | |
7 | 2019 | 2019 Chinese F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 2 | 18 | |
6 | 2018 | 2018 Russian F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 2 | 18 | |
5 | 2018 | 2018 Austrian F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | DNF | Hydraulic | 0 |
4 | 2017 | 2017 Abu Dhabi F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 1 | 25 | |
3 | 2017 | 2017 Brazilian F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 2 | 18 | |
2 | 2017 | 2017 Austrian F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 1 | 25 | |
1 | 2017 | 2017 Bahrain F1 GP | 77 | Mercedes | Mercedes | 1 | 3 | 15 |
Year | Team | Team Mate | Best Pos | Points | Wins | Poles | Pos | Quali | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2013 | Williams | Pastor Maldonado | 8 | 10 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 11 | 12 | 7 |
2014 | Williams | Felipe Massa | 2 | 2 | 186 | 134 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 9 | 13 | 6 |
2015 | Williams | Felipe Massa | 3 | 3 | 136 | 121 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 8 |
2016 | Williams | Felipe Massa | 3 | 5 | 85 | 53 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 9 | 17 | 4 |
2017 | Mercedes | Lewis Hamilton | 1 | 1 | 305 | 363 | 3 | 9 | 4 | 11 | 8 | 12 | 7 | 13 |
2018 | Mercedes | Lewis Hamilton | 2 | 1 | 247 | 408 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 11 | 3 | 18 | 6 | 15 |
2019 | Mercedes | Lewis Hamilton | 1 | 1 | 326 | 413 | 4 | 11 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 15 | 8 | 13 |
2020 | Mercedes | George Russell | 8 | 9 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Lewis Hamilton | 1 | 1 | 219 | 347 | 2 | 11 | 4 | 10 | 4 | 12 | 5 | 11 | ||
2021 | Mercedes | Lewis Hamilton | 1 | 1 | 226 | 387.5 | 1 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 18 | 5 | 17 |
2022 | Alfa Romeo | Zhou Guanyu | 5 | 8 | 49 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 7 | 13 | 9 |
2023 | Alfa Romeo | Zhou Guanyu | 8 | 9 | 10 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 9 | 15 | 7 |
2024 | Sauber | Zhou Guanyu | 11 | 8 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 10 | 20 | 4 |
Dec.20 - Valtteri Bottas intends to use his new job at Mercedes as a launching pad to return to the Formula 1 grid. The team has confirmed the widespread rumours by announcing..
Dec.9 - Valtteri Bottas admits it is "very likely" he will replace Mick Schumacher as Mercedes' main Formula 1 reserve driver in 2025. The Finn's final race for Audi-owned Sauber..
Dec.8 - Valtteri Bottas says that if he could rewind the past three years, he wouldn't have signed on the dotted line at Sauber. With the exception of the axed Logan Sargeant,..
Dec.5 - Even with no Finnish drivers on the grid, Finnish fans of Formula 1 will still enjoy specialised television coverage of the sport. With Valtteri Bottas dropped by..
Dec.4 - It is clear there is no love lost as Valtteri Bottas prepares to race for Audi-owned Sauber for the last time. Embarrassingly for the 10-time Mercedes race winner, he and..
Nov.29 - At least three current drivers are already eyeing the new Cadillac F1 team. Mercedes announced in Qatar that Mick Schumacher is stepping down from his role as the team's..
Nov.25 - Valtteri Bottas admits he is in talks with his former boss Toto Wolff about returning to Mercedes in 2025. The 34-year-old Finn is not being retained by Audi-owned..
Nov.24 - Toto Wolff is no longer hiding his interest in reuniting Valtteri Bottas with Mercedes. It is strongly rumoured that the 34-year-old Finn, ousted by Audi-owned Sauber for..
Nov.23 - Valtteri Bottas appears poised to return to Mercedes next year. Having lost his Audi-owned Sauber seat for 2025, the former 10-time Mercedes race winner has been linked..
Nov.22 - Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhou have suggested they are not giving up on Formula 1, despite losing their race seats for 2025. The pair, currently teammates at Audi-owned..
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