Bottas surprised with announcement: 'My contract expires after this season'
F1 News
Will they or won't they do more from 2026? The latter is the case, Audi's new CEO also revealed recently. The German car manufacturer is now busy building a power unit that will soon go into the back of the cars of (currently) Sauber; the team in which Audi has taken a stake. Meanwhile, Audi is also thinking increasingly emphatically about who the drivers will be in the team.
In 2024 and 2025, future Audi cars will operate under the Stake F1 name. This will be with Guanyu Zhou and Valtteri Bottas behind the wheel. The latter has always been assumed to have a contract until the end of '25, but speaking to Motorsport.com, the Finn reveals he is tied up until the end of the upcoming season. He says he will sit down with the team management in the first quarter of '24 and discuss a possible extension.
Bottas wants to join Audi
Bottas suspects that with a new contract for '25, he will also be committed for the following season. So that would be the first year with Audi. The Finn, a former Formula 1 vice-world champion, calls a tenure with Audi his first option: "From my understanding, they're going to make decisions of the years ahead early [this] year. So not yet. I'm going to have those discussions in the first quarter of [this] year," he says.
Should Bottas not get a new commitment with the German car brand, it does not mean that the Finn will stop his career in F1. "Being part of Audi would be my number one priority and preference. But if for some reason not, then absolutely I would talk to [other teams]. I want to be around because I feel like I still have some unfinished things in this sport."
Will Audi go for Sainz?
Several names are doing the rounds for Audi. Besides Bottas, current driver Guanyu Zhou and reserve driver Théo Pourchaire are also in the picture. Also in the conversation are the names of Nico Hulkenberg (Haas) and Carlos Sainz, who is in talks with Ferrari over a contract extension. The Italians reportedly want to commit him for '25 only, while Sainz wants to stay longer. Perhaps that opens up opportunities for Audi.