F1 News: Valtteri Bottas Speaks Out After Abu Dhabi Meltdown: 'Everything Went Wrong from Lap 1'

Saajan Jogia | Dec 9, 2024

Nov 20, 2024; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Stake F1 Sauber driver Valtteri Bottas (77) during media availabilities at Las Vegas Circuit. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Sauber driver Valtteri Bottas opened up on his disastrous final race with the Sauber F1 team in Abu Dhabi, stating this wasn't how he expected to end his 3-year-stint with the team. Bottas was well-positioned for a potential points finish by starting from P9, but two collisions during his race meant he had to retire the car. The unexpected DNF arrived amid reports of his potential move to Mercedes as a reserve driver, but an announcement is yet to come.

Bottas stepped on the gas of his Sauber C44 car on Sunday evening at the Yas Marina Circuit, hoping to score the first point of his season, but during a tricky situation after the race start, he made contact with Red Bull's Sergio Perez in the opening lap. Though that wasn't enough to put him out of the race, it damaged his car to the point where it compromised performance. To add to his woes, he attracted a 10-second time penalty for causing the incident.

If that wasn't enough, the Finn collided with Haas driver Kevin Magnussen on Lap 30 after locking up under braking into a left-hander and veering straight into Magnussen's VF-24, who was attempting an overtake on the outside of Turn 6. The collision was substantial, forcing Bottas to retire from the race. He also received a 5-place grid penalty for the incident, which will carry over if he returns to a full-time seat in Formula 1.

The former Mercedes driver had been vying for a potential contract extension with Sauber, set to transition to Audi in 2026. However, the German automaker ultimately selected F2 champion Gabriel Bortoleto to join Nico Hulkenberg in its 2025 driver lineup. Consequently, Bottas is reportedly in discussions with Mercedes about a potential return next year as a reserve driver, as no open seats remain on the F1 grid for 2025, except at VCARB, where Red Bull is expected to have already shortlisted a driver for that position. Speaking about the disastrous weekend, Bottas said:

“Definitely not the ideal finish but these things happen, it’s racing.

“Not the first time, everything just went wrong since Lap 1.

“The incident, then I got a penalty for it, then I was at the back out of position and later on, got together with Kevin [Magnussen]. It was my bad, I was defending with old tyres and I tried to brake as late as I could but I just couldn’t stop the car.”

Bottas remains the only driver on the F1 grid to have raced the entire year without scoring a point. This struggle can be attributed to the lack of development on the C44, which left both Bottas and his teammate Zhou Guanyu grappling with challenges throughout the season. It wasn't until the upgrades introduced in Las Vegas that the car began to show promising results. After the race, Bottas expressed that he wasn't "done yet," hinting at a potential future return to the F1 grid to make amends.