Amsterdam (AP) Formula One driver Valtteri Bottas left Mercedes at the end of the season to replace Kimi Raikkonen, who retired at Alfa Romeo.
The Alfa Romeo team said on Monday that Bottas signed a multi-year contract, paving the way for George Russell to replace Bottas in Mercedes.
For Bottas, it was a sad end to Mercedes’ career, and after replacing then-world champion Nico Rosberg in 2017, he never actually took off.
He won four races in Mercedes’ career with a victory at the Russian Grand Prix, but the 32-year-old Finnish driver did not take on the serious title challenge that Rosberg did in 2014 and 2016. bottom.
Bottas claimed the end of his nine wins at the Russian Grand Prix last September, finishing 20 consecutive wins without a win.
After failing to win the race in 2018, he finished in 5th place, which was disastrous overall, and finished 5th in the season four times in a row.
Bottas is third overall this year, but after 13 races he is almost 100 points behind his teammates Lewis Hamilton and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
He will now resume his career with a team where he will be under much less pressure.
“A new chapter in my racing career begins,” Bottas said. “We enjoy the opportunity to help teams move higher on the grid, especially as the new regulations in 2022 give them the opportunity to leap forward in their performance.”
He did not reach the heights Rosberg did, but his relationship with Hamilton was largely positive. This proved a welcome relief for Mercedes after Hamilton and Rosberg dropped out and had an open feud in the last two seasons.
“Working with Lewis was a privilege and a big challenge for the sport. Harmony of our relationships played a big role in the Constructors’ Championship we won,” Bottas said. rice field. “Thanks to Toto (Wolf), who is responsible for motorsports, and for respecting the team’s decision together.”
Wolff praised his efforts to help the team win the titles of four straight drivers and constructors since Bottas joined. When Rosberg retired a few days after the 2016 title and surprised F1, Wolff had little time to react and was forced to move fast from Williams to sign Botta.
“Valtteri has done a great job. He has made an integral contribution to our success and growth,” Wolff said. “He will definitely deserve to stay on the team, and I’m glad he was able to choose an exciting challenge with Alpha next year.”
Alfa Romeo team principal Frederick Vasul is familiar with Botta and has worked with him in the F3 and GP3 categories.
“The multi-year contract that brings him to us gives both Valtteri and the team the stability we need to build,” Vasul said. “We are excited about the future ahead.”
Russell excels at Williams in a much slower car, demonstrating all his abilities in a stunning second place in the rain-wet Belgian Grand Prix qualifying two races ago. He finished second in the shortened race.
Prior to that race, Russell was informed that he would have a seat in Mercedes in 2022, though he couldn’t say so yet.
He has driven once before for Mercedes.
Russell replaced Hamilton at the Sakhir Grand Prix in December last year when a British driver was infected with the coronavirus, qualifying in impressive second place behind Bottas, despite having little time to adapt to the car. Passed.
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Other AP Auto Racing: https: //apnews.com/hub/auto-racing and https://twitter.com/AP-Sports
Bottas leaves Mercedes F1 team to join Alfa Romeo | WGN Radio 720
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