Valtteri Bottas Reveals Major Contrast Between Sauber And Mercedes

Saajan Jogia | 14 Hours Ago

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, who raced for Mercedes from 2017 to 2021, revealed the key difference between his time at Mercedes and his current stint at Sauber, pointing to the stability and consistency Mercedes offers which Sauber has struggled to match.

Bottas revealed that the situation at the Hinwil-based outfit deteriorated significantly after Fred Vasseur departed to lead Ferrari in 2023. He admitted that the circumstances worsened to such an extent that, if given the chance, he might have reconsidered joining the team three years ago. The Finn parts ways with Sauber this year to rejoin Mercedes as a reserve driver in 2025.

Thanks to Zhou Guanyu's performance in the Las Vegas Grand Prix, the future Audi Works team could end the season with four points in the Constructors' Championship. The lack of concrete development on the 2024 C44 F1 car meant that both drivers finished races outside the points in nearly all Grands Prix of the season.

Bottas explained that he was unlucky to have gotten stuck in a team that seemed promising when he joined under Vasseur's leadership in 2022, following his exit from Mercedes. He told Motorsport.com:

“So I just think it's for me, it's just a bit unlucky that I've got into this situation, which ended up being the worst-case scenario. It meant I was left without the seat for next year.

“If I could go back three years, I probably would have chosen another team to go into, based on what the situation is now.

“But you just can't predict the future, because in the first year, when I signed up with Fred for three years, there was a clear plan and clear goals.

“The first year was, I think, great overall. But then when Fred left, things kind of collapsed a bit, including the goals and the targets.”

With a revolving door of team bosses starting with Vasseur's departure, followed by Andreas Seidl's exit, and now CEO and CTO Mattia Binotto taking the reins this year, Bottas acknowledged a lack of stability in the team's leadership, which subsequently triggered further shakeups in the upper management. This was a stark contrast to his five-year stint with Mercedes, where people had long-term contracts so they could focus on their work instead of worrying about their future. He said:

“There has not been enough stability in terms of the leadership.

“We have now our third new leader within three years, and with each of the changes to the top, it has also meant that many key people have changed in the roles.

“There's been people leaving and people coming, so that naturally takes time. I don't think we've just had the solid foundation to build on.

“It's been like we build something, and then it falls down, and then we try again. So I think that's the main thing, just lack of stability overall.”

He added:

“When I was at Mercedes, that was a big strength.

“Everyone had long, long contracts. There was always stability.

“So you could just really focus on the work, and not spend time trying to find new people or kicking people out. So I think that seems to be the case in many top teams.”

As a result of a lack of success in Formula 1 with Sauber, Bottas was focussing on areas off the race track where he could fulfill his competitive targets for contentment. He added:

“I haven't had, unfortunately, that much fun in terms of fighting for results I want on track, so on track definitely has been very challenging.

“But I've been trying to compensate that with my off-track life; doing other stuff, because I need the thrill from somewhere.

“I want to meet my targets in something. Let's give an example, the gravel world championships. I wanted to qualify for that, and I wanted to compete. I set it as a goal, and I achieved it, and I finished it in more or less in the midfield, and I was actually really happy about it.

“So I think all these things aside, I've been doing it because I need that feeling of getting into my goals and stuff like that. That's why I'm overall very, very happy.”