The 33-year-old is the fourth-most seasoned driver on the current grid, trailing only Fernando Alonso, his former Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton, and Sergio Perez.
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Valtteri Bottas is currently in his eleventh season in Formula 1 for the 2023 season, and despite spending more than a decade in the sport, the Finn says he intends to stay on the grid for many years because he still feels young in comparison to others. The 33-year-old is the fourth-most seasoned driver on the current grid, trailing only Fernando Alonso, his former Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton, and Sergio Perez. He has started 205 Grands Prix so far in his career. Speaking on the Beyond The Grid podcast, Bottas acknowledged that there are many variables that could influence his choice, but he remained optimistic about his future as a grid member.
“It’s hard to say,” said Bottas, when asked if he will race into his 40s. “It obviously depends [on] the way the sport is going. What’s the situation in the sport? Which team are you in? How is the atmosphere? At some point, what [gets] to you is all the travelling. Would you rather be racing [on] another side of the globe, or would you rather actually not pack your suitcase and stay home? I think that’s going to come at some point. It’s pretty consuming. I’m still more than happy to do it for quite a long time. But I’ll tell you when I’m 39 if I go for 40! It’s hard to commit to at the moment, but I still have many, many years for sure.”
Bottas switched from Mercedes to Alfa Romeo for the start of the 2022 season, but his current deal is set to end at the conclusion of the 2024 season. The Finn was questioned about how eager he was to still be competing when the German automaker Audi took over the team in 2026. “I’m still young compared to some,” said Bottas. “I’m 33. I still don’t see my Formula 1 career ending in the near future and I don’t feel any performance losses on my driving or the way I work with the team. It is interesting for the whole race team and company what is happening. Of course, being part of a car manufacturer is something that you almost need if you want to win in Formula 1.”
Read More – Why did Formula One cancel the 2023 Emilia Romagna GP?
While fans around the globe were waiting in excitement for the 2023 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, Formula One came out with a statement on Wednesday afternoon stating that the race weekend had been canceled. Why did the FIA take such a decision? Well, let’s start off by saying that it was absolutely the correct thing to do if one knows how the situation is currently in the northern part of Italy.
Severe and incessant rains in the region have caused heavy flooding that has heavily impacted communities in the region, including Emilia-Romagna, and emergency services have been working day and night to get people to safety. Currently, the Emilia Romagna region is under a red threat-level warning from the Italian authorities due to pouring rain and fears of flooding and landslides. As per The Guardian, it is understood that the Imola race will likely not be rescheduled later in the season.
