Valtteri Bottas has talked up a potential move to Cadillac next season, saying the new Formula 1 team represent an “interesting project.”
The American outfit will debut as F1’s 11th team on the grid next season and team principal Graeme Lowdon admitted earlier this year that there were at least six drivers shortlisted for its two seats. Sources have told ESPN that Sergio Pérez remains high on the list for Cadillac.
Another former driver appears to have thrown his hat in the ring, with Bottas — Lewis Hamilton‘s ex-teammate and now a Mercedes reserve — telling F1’s Beyond the Grid podcast that he is “not done yet” in F1 and that Cadillac are an option.
“I don’t think they’re in a massive rush,” Bottas said, referring to Cadillac’s driver lineup choices. “They’ve been very, very busy on trying to get a car on the grid for next year.
“I know my timeline, when I want to know about next year and what plans do I need to make, which I think, August, more or less, is a pretty good target for that. But hopefully we’ll hear something more soon.
“I think they have a few drivers on the list. I would imagine my experience will help because now I’ve raced in three different teams, with one of the teams [that] had mega success. With Williams as well, [we] had some great results, so I hope I’m in a good position.
“For me, I actually see a very interesting project, something new to F1, an American team with maybe a different view to the sport. If I would be there as a driver, it would be actually very interesting because you can start from scratch.
“The team starts from zero. You could actually make a big influence on certain things, which direction to go, and that would be very motivating and rewarding when the success comes.
“I think the rule change is always a good point to jump in because you just never know, if you suddenly get it right you might actually be doing really well from the get-go.”
Bottas is a 10-time race winner in F1 and helped Mercedes to five straight constructors’ titles from 2017 to 2021. The Finnish driver was left without a seat this year, however, after Sauber let him go.
“I definitely still feel — and that emotion was quite quick after I knew I wouldn’t get a seat for this year — that I’m not done yet with F1,” Bottas added.
“I still have more to give. It’s still [the] number one thing in my life. That sensation, now that I’ve been watching aside, has got stronger and stronger and stronger, and now I really start to miss racing.”
Source: espn.com