Williams ready to release Bottas
Claire Williams says she is prepared to release Valtteri Bottas to join Mercedes, but only if this does not jeopardize the team. In the event of Bottas's departure, the team manager would like to replace him with an experienced driver. Felipe Massa could thus come out of retirement!
As the Mercedes team looks for a driver to race alongside Lewis Hamilton following Nico Rosberg’s retirement announcement, the name of Williams driver Valtteri Bottas is being strongly mentioned as a replacement.
The daughter of Frank Williams, founder of the eponymous team, says she is open to the possibility of letting the Finnish driver, contractually linked with the team, leave: « I am delighted to see that a team like Mercedes is considering Valtteri as a potential replacement for Nico. We have always known that Valtteri was one of the best talents in the sport and we are proud that the championship leaders recognize him. »
But before possibly letting Bottas go, Claire Williams wants to ensure that this departure does not affect the performance and future of the Grove team. To do this, Williams wants an alternative to be found and even mentions a potential return of Felipe Massa: « However, Williams has its own ambitions, and we must always ensure that we give our team the best opportunity to move forward. Any changes will only be made if Williams remains in a strong position to be competitive and develop in 2017. If we allow Valtteri to leave, we will only do so if there is an experienced and credible driver available, such as someone like Felipe Massa. »
The problem posed by this departure must be put into perspective with the recruitment of the young Lance Stroll, 2016 F3 champion, and son of one of Williams’ shareholders, who will need to learn from a more experienced driver.
Knowing that Williams is powered by Mercedes, there is always the possibility of bringing in Pascal Wehrlein, who is protected by the brand, but the German only has one year of experience in the discipline, which does not meet the criteria of the British team. In any case, this could be seen as another disappointment for Wehrlein, who hoped to eye the Mercedes seat after Esteban Ocon was preferred for a spot at Force India.
Let us finally recall that Toto Wolff is part of Valtteri Bottas’ management, which could facilitate the agreement to join Mercedes.
