Robert Doornbos is not impressed with the performance of Valtteri Bottas in 2021. The former Formula 1 driver calls the year of the 31-year-old Finn the worst ever in the service of Mercedes. Doornbos thinks that the teammate of Lewis Hamilton has already been told that he will not receive a new contract offer.

"He is having a dramatic season, his worst ever in the service of Mercedes," Doornbos is adamant in his column for Ziggo Sport. The analyst saw Bottas initially still coming along reasonably well. "He was right up there with Hamilton in qualifying, which was fine. In terms of race pace it was mwah in the beginning, but at one point he even pushed Lewis when they were chasing Max."

Two-stint winning strategy

During the second stint, everything went haywire for Bottas. He first saw Verstappen come alongside and to make matters worse Perez also robbed him of a podium spot. "You then hear Bottas complain to his team that they didn't listen to him before the race. In his mind, a two-stop before the race was already the better strategy. But during the race, when he was stuck behind Hamilton, he could also have said, 'Guys, offer me a different strategy, because I'm not getting past this way'. Bottas doesn't have that superiority or leadership to steer that team," said the 39-year-old Dutchman.

Doornbos thinks Toto Wolff and Mercedes have already tied the knot about 2022: George Russell will make the switch after three years at Williams."In my opinion, he has already been told that he will not be there next year. There is no good vibe there."