Bottas Signs For Alfa Romeo On Multi-Year Deal

Calum Gill 13:10 06/09/2021

Valtteri Bottas has agreed a multi-year deal to race for Alfa Romeo in Formula 1 next season, paving the way for Mercedes to announce George Russell as Lewis Hamilton’s 2022 team-mate.

News of The Finn's deal with Alfa Romeo - a multi-year agreement unlike any of his Mercedes contracts - came on Monday morning after the Dutch Grand Prix and will precede confirmation from Mercedes that Russell will replace him. Bottas is in his fifth season with Mercedes but it had become increasingly clear since the end of F1’s summer break that Russell was picked in his place for next year. Mercedes said it did not want to announce its decision until the other driver’s future was also settled, which has now come in the form of the Bottas/Alfa Romeo confirmation.

Bottas had been linked with a return to his old Williams team in a straight swap with Russell but has opted to link up with his old ART junior single-seater team boss Frédéric Vasseur at the Sauber-run Alfa Romeo operation instead. “The potential of the setup in Hinwil is clear and I am relishing the opportunity to help lead the team forward up the grid, especially with the new regulations in 2022 giving the team a chance to make a leap in performance,” said Bottas.

"I’m grateful for the trust the team has put in me and I cannot wait to repay their faith: I’m as hungry as ever to race for results and, when the time comes, for wins. I know Fred (Vasseur) well and I am looking forward to getting to know the rest of the team I am going to work with, building relationships as strong as the ones I have at Mercedes.”

Vasseur said the multi-year deal “gives both Valtteri and the team the stability we need to build our project at a crucial time for Formula 1”. Bottas’ Alfa Romeo move marks the end of a lengthy stint at Mercedes that turned Bottas into a multiple race winner and two-time championship runner-up. Reflecting on his time with Mercedes, the fifth different Finnish driver to win a Grand Prix said, “I am proud of what I have achieved in Brackley and I am fully focused on finishing the job as we fight for another world championship, but I am also looking forward to the new challenges that await me next year.”