Why Bottas is not letting the “worst-case scenario” end his F1 career

Valtteri Bottas could also be enthusiastic about ‘what’s subsequent’ for him in Formulation 1, however there isn’t any hiding the frustration about how a ‘worst-case state of affairs’ left him on the sidelines.

Having had excessive hopes about what a transfer to Alfa/Romeo Sauber in 2022 – then beneath the management of Fred Vasseur – may carry him, Bottas was finally denied the progress he hoped for by a change on the prime, and this season was his first in F1 the place he failed to attain some extent.

Having been ignored for a seat at Hinwil for 2025 in favour of Gabriel Bortoleto, and no choices elsewhere, Bottas is returning to Mercedes as a reserve driver – hoping that he can discover his method again into race motion for 2026.

The Finn has stored a courageous face on the challenges of this season – the place highlights have been his extracurricular actions greater than on-track performances.

However for somebody as aggressive as he’s, Bottas’ struggles have admittedly not been straightforward to deal with.

Chatting with Autosport, Bottas mentioned: “It is exhausting, for certain, as a result of I want to present what I can do and shine and have my moments, however it’s tough on the again. Folks simply will not see and virtually individuals neglect what you possibly can obtain.

“So I simply suppose it is for me, it is only a bit unfortunate that I’ve received into this example, which ended up being the worst-case state of affairs. It meant I used to be left with out the seat for subsequent yr.

“If I may return three years, I most likely would have chosen one other group to enter, based mostly on what the scenario is now.

“However you simply cannot predict the long run, as a result of within the first yr, once I signed up with Fred for 3 years, there was a transparent plan and clear objectives.

“The primary yr was, I feel, nice total. However then when Fred left, issues sort of collapsed a bit, together with the objectives and the targets.”

Bottas actually couldn’t have predicted how issues would go south this yr, as Sauber dropped to the again of the sector and ended up tenth within the constructors’ championship.

It was solely Zhou Guanyu’s eighth-place end in Qatar that prevented the group from ending 2024 with none factors on the board in any respect.

A part of the reason for the drop in competitiveness is that the squad centered an excessive amount of on its Audi plans from 2026, so uncared for the current.

However Bottas thinks that issues have additionally not been helped by the influence of a rotating door of administration with Vasseur, then Andreas Seidl, and most just lately Mattia Binotto.

“There has not been sufficient stability by way of the management,” he mentioned. “We have now now our third new chief inside three years, and with every of the modifications to the highest, it has additionally meant that many key individuals have modified within the roles.

“There’s been individuals leaving and folks coming, in order that naturally takes time. I do not suppose we have simply had the stable basis to construct on.

“It has been like we construct one thing, after which it falls down, after which we strive once more. So I feel that is the primary factor, simply lack of stability total.”

And Bottas has no doubts that if there may be one factor a prime group like Mercedes had throughout his time there, it was stability.

“After I was at Mercedes, that was a giant energy,” he mentioned. “Everybody had lengthy, lengthy contracts. There was all the time stability.

“So you could possibly simply actually concentrate on the work, and never spend time looking for new individuals or kicking individuals out. So I feel that appears to be the case in lots of prime groups.”

Completely happy life off monitor

Valtteri Bottas, KICK Sauber

Picture by: Andy Hone / Motorsport Pictures

Whereas issues haven’t been nice for Bottas on monitor, there’s a sure irony to the truth that he appears to be happier than ever off it.

His antics are nicely favored on social media, he has challenged himself in ways in which he by no means thought he may earlier than, and he’s revelling in all of it.

“I have never had, sadly, that a lot enjoyable by way of combating for outcomes I need on monitor,” he mentioned. “So on monitor positively has been very difficult.

“However I have been attempting to compensate that with my off-track life; doing different stuff, as a result of I want the joys from someplace.

“I wish to meet my targets in one thing. Let’s give an instance, the gravel world championships. I needed to qualify for that, and I needed to compete. I set it as a objective, and I achieved it, and I completed it in kind of within the midfield, and I used to be really actually blissful about it.

“So I feel all these items apart, I have been doing it as a result of I want that feeling of stepping into my objectives and stuff like that. That is why I am total very, very blissful.”

One in every of his extra eye-opening off-track actions was when he determined to do an in-villa Ironman – a 2.4-mile swim in a small pool, 112-mile Peloton bike journey after which a 26.2-mile marathon on a treadmill.

Valtteri Bottas, Stake F1 Crew Kick Sauber, cycles the monitor

Picture by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Pictures

Talking about that feat, Bottas mentioned the thought had come to him the earlier night time over dinner.

“I used to be really having some wine after which I used to be like: ‘Tomorrow is an Ironman, a full one,’” he smiled. “So, yeah, 6am to the pool, and off we go!

“Midway via it, I used to be considering, what am I doing? Why have I completed it? However then I believed: ‘Okay, I am midway. There isn’t any method of stopping now.’ So I needed to full it.

“I am glad I did it. It was really mentally, to undergo that, a fairly eye-opening expertise. , you’ve actually received to dig deep and also you learn the way a lot it is simply actually the psychological energy. As a result of ultimately, when your physique is empty, you then’re simply going along with your willpower. And that is a fairly cool feeling once you full it.”

It’s this inside aggressive hearth, the necessity to push himself, and a happiness in all the things round him, that finally made him decided to not simply stroll away from F1 in spite of everything he has been via this yr.

“That is why I additionally really feel like I am not completed with the game but, as a result of I really feel like I may go endlessly,” he admitted.

“I’ve received all the things in an ideal stability, and I do not actually really feel like I am getting fatigue due to F1. In order that’s why I really feel like I nonetheless have issues to provide for the game, no matter position it’s.”