Valtteri Bottas Sends Sly Jab To Sauber After F1 Replacement

After being replaced by Sauber for the 2025 F1 season, Valtteri Bottas returned to Mercedes as a third driver, making a subtle social media dig at his former team.

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

Finnish Formula 1 driver Valtteri Bottas recently threw a subtle jab at his former team on social media. This followed Sauber's decision not to extend his contract beyond 2024, leaving Bottas to sign with Mercedes for 2025.

Early on, Bottas had high hopes to remain with Sauber and help lead their transition into an Audi factory team, which is set to happen in 2026. However, Sauber has chosen to bring in Nico Hülkenberg and young talent Gabriel Bortoleto into their driver lineup instead, prompting Bottas’s departure from the team.

From 2017 to 2021, Bottas was part of the Mercedes team. It was during this period that Bottas contributed to Mercedes securing five consecutive Constructors’ Championships alongside Lewis Hamilton.

In 2022, Bottas was drawn to Sauber, which was Alfa Romeo at the time, urged on by the vision presented to him by then-principal Fred Vasseur. However, the surprise departure of Vasseur in January 2023, who moved to become Ferrari's team principal, was the beginning of challenges for both Bottas and Sauber. The team never quite managed to regain its footing or meet expected targets, leading to disappointing seasons that culminated in Bottas scoring no points in 2024.

Leaving Sauber opened up a different path for Bottas, one that leads back to Mercedes. As the third driver for Mercedes in 2025, Bottas finds himself returning to a familiar environment. Sending a sly jab to Sauber in an Instagram Story, Bottas shared a photo of himself in a Mercedes with the caption:

"Decent car."

Speaking about his upcoming return to Mercedes, Bottas explained:

“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.

“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.”