He has been a Mercedes driver for four years, but on Friday Valtteri Bottas had to say goodbye to his old team. In 2022, he will drive for Alfa Romeo with Guanyu Zhou by his side.
The Finn has been able to achieve good results at the British racing stable. During his years with Mercedes he finished second twice and third twice in the world championship. Furthermore, the 32 year old driver managed to stand on the podium 67 times, including ten victories. Furthermore he has been a great team mate for Lewis Hamilton and has helped him a lot during the races.
New adventure for him and Russell
In the new Formula 1 season he will have to get used to a new team and a new teammate. Fred Vasseur has given him a seat at Alfa Romeo, but his duties will be different at the Italian team. He will drive alongside rookie Zhou and so again Bottas will have to help a teammate, but this time with his knowledge and skills.
George Russell will take over the former Mercedes driver's seat and so will take his place alongside the seven-time world champion. He has driven at Williams since 2019, but it was time for a new challenge. At the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix, the Briton had a seat in one of the Mercedes cars, but now the car is his throughout the whole season. The speed was there immediately, but will it be the same in 2022?