Valtteri Bottas faces his first season out of Formula 1 since joining the grid in 2013, having endured a lacklustre couple of seasons with Sauber.
The move away from Mercedes at the end of 2021 was meant to be a fresh start for the Finn, having been outclassed by Lewis Hamilton during their five seasons together.
Sauber was operating under the Alfa Romeo guise at the time and with the team using Ferrari engines, it meant they were effectively a second works outfit for the Italian marquee. So while it was not a step down for Bottas, competitively Sauber struggled to break into the top ten.
After a difficult start to 2024, whereby the team had encountered a design fault with their wheel rim and nut design which caused slow pit stops, it was looking close to being a pointless season for Sauber.
Instead, Bottas’ teammate Zhou Guanyu managed to get four points on the board for the team in Qatar following a spate of early and mid-race retirements. Bottas was ousted from the team in favour of F2 champion Gabriel Bortoleto for 2025, with the Finn finding refuge at Mercedes for 2025.
Discussing his options for a comeback drive with Motorsport Week, Bottas thinks there could still be an opportunity for him to return to the grid.
Valtteri Bottas thinks Mercedes-engined teams would offer him a drive in 2026
Mercedes will be adding Alpine to its customer engine roster for the 2026 season, meaning they will be suppling three teams along with McLaren and Williams.
Bottas believes there could still be opportunities to race for them, with the Finn having previously been linked to a seat with Williams before they chose Carlos Sainz.
“There’s many Mercedes-powered cars on the grid which can suddenly bring opportunities. And in this sport you just never know what happens in any case,” said Bottas.
“Also there’s ‘26 where things can happen. I think I’m still prepared to stay in the game, let’s say, and try and find a way to be back.”
Valtteri Bottas to help Andrea Kimi Antonelli in rookie season
Although Bottas will be primarily operating as Mercedes third driver for the 2025 season, which could see him take part in tests or any reserve role, he will also be a massive help for one of F1’s promising rookies.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli will be making his full-time debut for Mercedes at just 18 years old, with the Italian set to be under extreme pressure.
READ MORE: Mercedes reserve driver Valtteri Bottas’ life outside F1 from girlfriend to wine and gin
Bottas will be able to lend Antonelli a lot of experience and help guide him through what will be a challenging year, especially as Mercedes will be expecting results out of the box.
The team made inroads with upgrades made to the W14 towards the end of last season, and look set to be amongst the top teams including Red Bull and Ferrari.
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