Bottas considers himself faster than during his years at Mercedes

This is a statement that may come as a surprise. Struggling this season with zero points and last place in the championship, the Finnish driver Valtteri Bottas nevertheless wanted to explain that his pace has not declined despite all these years, and that he still feels fit to drive in Formula 1, despite the numerous transfer rumors for the second seat at Audi. For him, gaining even more experience is a key factor in progressing in the discipline. In fact, with experience, we constantly improve. We gain in consistency, in confidence. We can solve different problems in a different way. We adapt to the car as we spend more time in the sport. In reality, I think I drive better than when I was at Mercedes, but obviously, it’s not as visible.

For Bottas, his speed has not disappeared.

The driver with ten Grand Prix victories criticized the opinion of some fans and former managers, Andreas Seidl and Oliver Hoffman, who do not take into account the car in which the drivers are and focus only on the results. “Yes, it is not an easy situation for a pilot, because he must fight to prove what he can do. If people are satisfied with just looking at the results, it is quite easy to judge them,” revealed the Finnish driver to the media, including RaceFans. “But the main thing is that I know how I behave, the team knows how I behave, and ultimately, that’s what matters. People who know the drivers’ performances will always see what you can do, what you can achieve if you have the machine.”

An experience in a cutting-edge car that can be useful to him in discussions

In his quest for a Sauber seat for 2025, Bottas hopes that the Hinwil team will take into account his entire career and not just this season, where the car does not allow him to express his talent, even though he has proven that he is still ahead of his teammate, especially in qualifying, where the Finnish driver leads 16-1 in their head-to-head. The former Williams driver hopes that his years at Mercedes will be taken into account by the new management at Audi, Mattia Binotto and Jonathan Wheatley, as the Finnish driver occasionally managed to compete with the seven-time British world champion. But I think the difference with Mattia is that he was in a battle against us when I was at Mercedes, and he could watch what I could do, and I could steal points from them, so he knows.

« As I said, I think we have started the discussions in the right way, with respect, and that’s what I really appreciate. So we will continue the discussions, but for me, what I want is clear, and what I want is to be in F1 until Audi joins us.
» The Finn still hopes to keep his seat, even though he knows the competition is tough, a struggle that has intensified since Williams recently warned Audi that it would accept to loan its driver Franco Colapinto to the future German manufacturer as early as next year.

However, Hamilton’s former teammate hopes to have Audi’s priority and considers that his experience gained over the years can be a fundamental asset to start the Audi project well. “People have short memories in this sport, but as I said, fortunately, there are still people who know. So I rely on them,” concluded Bottas, who is still looking for his first point this season.