Alfa Romeo confirms Bottas deal for next season and beyond
Sep.6 - Valtteri Bottas will join Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN for the 2022 season and beyond, the Finnish driver signing a multi-year deal with the Hinwil-based team. Bottas, a nine-time Grand Prix winner, joins the team as it embarks on the crucial transition to the new era of Formula One, with sweeping regulation changes providing a unique opportunity to move towards the front of the grid.
Born in Nastola, Finland, on August 28th, 1989, Valtteri had a distinguished career in the junior formulas, becoming only the second driver to win both the Formula Renault Eurocup and the Formula Renault Northern European Cup in the same year, in 2008, and following this by winning the Masters of Formula 3 in both 2009 and 2010 – the first to achieve this double-triumph feat. A promotion to the GP3 Series saw Valtteri win four races and claim the title, demonstrating his readiness for the biggest stage of motorsport.
Debut in Formula One duly took place in 2013, with Williams, where Valtteri emerged as one of the brightest talents in the sport, before a promotion to Mercedes for 2017. There, the Finn would play a crucial role in securing four constructors’ titles, winning his first race in Sochi in 2017 and adding eight more first places to his tally, alongside a total of 54 podiums for the Brackley team.
Nine wins, 17 pole positions and 63 podiums are a strong introduction for Valtteri, World Championship runner-up in 2019 and 2020. Next year will bring a new page for the talent from Nastola. Joining Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN will allow Valtteri to put his experience at the competitive end of Formula One to use as he helps the team move up the rankings. With new regulations providing a great reset in the sport, the opportunity is there for team and driver to write a new, successful story together.
Valtteri Bottas, driver: “A new chapter in my racing career is opening: I’m excited to join Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN for 2022 and beyond for what is going to be a new challenge with an iconic manufacturer. Alfa Romeo is a brand that needs no introduction, they have written some great pages of Formula One history and it’s going to be an honour to represent this marque. The potential of the setup in Hinwil is clear and I am relishing the opportunity to help lead the team forward up the grid, especially with the new regulations in 2022 giving the team a chance to make a leap in performance. I’m grateful for the trust the team has put in me and I cannot wait to repay their faith: I’m as hungry as ever to race for results and, when the time comes, for wins. I know Fred [Vasseur] well and I am looking forward to getting to know the rest of the team I am going to work with, building relationships as strong as the ones I have at Mercedes. I am proud of what I have achieved in Brackley and I am fully focused on finishing the job as we fight for another world championship, but I am also looking forward to the new challenges that await me next year.”
Frédéric Vasseur, Team Principal of Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN: “It is a pleasure to welcome Valtteri to the team and we are looking forward to our journey together. With him, we bring to Hinwil a strong team player with experience at the sharp end of the grid. Valtteri has been an integral part of a team that rewrote the history books and he has four constructors’ world titles to his name: he is the right driver to help Alfa Romeo Racing ORLEN make a step forward towards the front of the grid. Our relationship goes back a long way, to when we worked together in successful campaigns in F3 and GP3, and his talent and skills have been evident ever since, only growing with the time: I’m really looking forward to seeing him put his ability to work for the good of the team. The multi-year deal bringing him to us gives both Valtteri and the team the stability we need to build our project at a crucial time for Formula One: we are excited for what the future holds in store.”
There are still 8 seats are 'open' for next season. These seat are both seats at Williams, AlphaTauri and Aston Martin, one seat at Alfa Romeo and one at Mercedes. Here you can find the 2022 F1 Drivers & Teams overview.
✅ Check out more posts with related topics:
George this is James, Lewis is faster than you, Lewis is faster than you, confirm you understood please, pretty please.
I think it will be the other way around. "Lewis this is James, George is faster than you, please don't do a Silvertone on him when he tries to overtakes you on the outside fo Stowe..."
Well said James. Watching Sir Lewis over the years, to me and a few of my close friends, he has become an F1 thug, allot of complaining if he does not get his way.
He is an amazing driver, a shame he has that traite
I have never been so pleased to be proven wrong re the GW & VB situation. I was so convinced that Lewis would get his way & VB would stay. This is why I'm an eternal pessimist & always have been. If things don't work out, it's been expected & if it all works out, it's an added bonus. At least the 'Secret Squirrel' news is out. You have to be of a certain age to get the Secret Squirrel analogy 😁
George Russell, not George Williams 🤪
Linda, make that two of us My Apr guess was HAM/BOT or BOT/RUS.....oops, wrong. It would be a hoot if HAM gets #8 and does a Nico at Abu Dhabi. LOL
ROR, it wouldn't surprise me if LH did just that but, he's got to win that 8th title first! Bottas now saying that he wouldn't have stayed at Mercedes if they'd only offered him a 1 year deal again. He's got some stability at least with a 3 year deal, unless there is something written into that 3 year contract if he doesn't deliver
if Bottas monsters his team mate he should be ok, otherwise that 3rd yr option will be tricky, lets face it all 2022 are gonna look very similar , but with alfa all matey with ferrari, if they crack the areo , then alfa will.
As for Lewis, my guess has been all along that if he wins hes off at end of the yr leaving Merc to bring in Nick from Fe, if he doesnt win then im with Ror hell stay on for 22 for the cash and a possible wdc
And lets be blunt , lewis says cash is king , well that goes for him too...from crazy clothes fees to trying to stop a firm using hamilton as there trade mark for watches ffs
With the new bedroom at the Ferrari shop maybe...just maybe...Haas will share some of that red car speed. MAZspin can do his deal at a higher speed.
Linda, IMO Shrop' has it right. BOT only has to dom GIO/ALB...whomever...to be embraced at Alfa. Will he?
One telling stat, 9 Wins in 5 years in one of the most dominate F1 cars of all time. At least the first part of the 2022 season will be a GR, LH, MV epic.
Edited "At least the first part of the 2022 season will be a GR, CL, MV epic."
Nicely not mentioned the 63 podiums hes had, dont think wins is everything. Hamilton has 4 and max 7 this year its consistency that makes a championship, that and unlucky dnfs
The lad will be playing so many mind games between now and end of the yr, Hamster will just run and hide, bring on Nick....not so much orange trs , more like brown
yea 'cause 3rd places are everything in mercedes over the last 4 years. Just look at the total points over the last 4 seasons between LH and VB, big numbers I know but using a calculator will help.
course its big numbers, but heres a little known fact for you, are you ready... podiums arent just 1st and 3rd places
Really shoddypost, you are very good at pointing out the obvious and irrelevant. Thought I'd do the maths for you, since 2017 LH 1752 points VB 1220 points a difference of over 105 points a season, massive.
Shrop', you don't need my help, but here it is anyway.
Mechanical DNF's (team fault) since 2017. HAM=1 BOT=5
Suddenly that point difference isn't quite so 'massive'. Stats don't lie, Awardguys do, or they're just plain ignorant.
How many times was he sacrificed at the altar of LH?
Well said James. Watching Sir Lewis over the years, to me and a few of my close friends, he has become an F1 thug, allot of complaining if he does not get his way.
He is an amazing driver, a shame he has that traite
yeah yeah, yeah and hes had 37 haircuts too .
Ta Ror, yeah i think f1 has it in for VB course he was a No 2 like Rubens, mark W, and Massa, dont know why hes such a bee in his bonnet, maybe the nurse is late with his meds.
ROR amd shoddyPost, so over 5 years VB has had 4 more DNF's, on average a difference of less than 1 DNF a year, which VB would score an average of say 15 points, so 15 times 5 is a net loss of 75 points over 5 years.
Now how do you account account for the other 450'ish points. It's still a massive points difference, plus, you now look as silly as ShoddyPost.
Over to you chuckle Brother's
So bout 90 points a yr with what 18-20 races so 5 points a race, but this is something i cant be arsed with anymore....
✅ Checkout the latest 50 F1 Fans comments.