F1 News
Bottas returns to Mercedes to become their third driver
- Ludo van Denderen
Valtteri Bottas has returned to his former team. The Finn will join Mercedes as the third driver, the German team announced. The veteran driver had his greatest successes with the German team. As Lewis Hamilton's teammate, he won ten Grands Prix there, with his best position in the world championship being P2.
Since leaving Sauber, Bottas has made several videos on social media asking: 'What next?'. He now says: "I'm happy to finally answer the question I've posed over the past month. Returning home to the Mercedes family as Third Driver for 2025 is what's next and I couldn't be more pleased. I want to thank Toto, the team at Brackley, and everyone at the three-pointed star for welcoming me back with open arms."
Bottas looks forward to comeback
Bottas continued: "Despite the challenges of the past few years, I know that I've still got so much more to contribute to F1. Since I was a five-year-old kid growing up in Nastola, Finland, my focus has been on achieving success in the top tier of motorsport. I've been fortunate to have enjoyed many incredible moments in my 12 years of racing in F1 so far. As I return to the place where so many of those moments were achieved, I'm looking forward to using all the knowledge I've gained to help the team to perform and progress towards our goal of fighting for world championships."
Bottas was looking for a new challenge after his contract at Sauber was not renewed. With no further spots on the F1 grid available to him, he opted for a quite role for 2025. His intention is to drive Grands Prix again in 2026.
This article was written in collaboration with Olly Darcy
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