Valtteri Bottas News, Rumors & Driver Updates

High Brake Temperatures Bottas finished 18th in the Spanish Grand Prix Formula 1 race at the Madring Circuit on Sunday afternoon.

Impact Bottas would lack pace in qualifying and register P20 after failing to advance from Q3. The Cadillac veteran would actually start P19 on the grid due to Carlos Sainz and his three-place grid penalty. The chaos of lap 1 and the contact back in the field would damage Bottas' car and it's aerodynamics. In addition he would manage the rest of the race with high brake temperatures which limited his strategy. Bottas would fall 3 laps down to the leader and finish the race as the last car running in P18.

SEPTEMBER 15 • ROTOWIRE

Struggles in Italy Bottas finished 19th in the Italian Grand Prix Formula 1 race at the Monza Circuit on Sunday afternoon.

Impact Despite starting P16 on the grid at the Monza Circuit, Bottas would find it hard to hang onto that track position. A lack of pace would see him fall to the back of the field not long after the lights out and Bottas would be mired in a backend battle the rest of the day. His two-stop strategy would not help matters and the Cadillac Racing veteran would fall 2 laps down to the leaders by the checkered flag. The P19 finish would make him the last car running at the finish.

SEPTEMBER 8 • ROTOWIRE

Hydraulic Issue Bottas suffered a hydraulic failure and finished 18th in the Dutch Grand Prix Formula 1 race at the Zandvoort Circuit on Sunday afternoon.

Impact A poor qualifying effort would put Bottas 21st on the starting grid. He'd struggle with pace in another back-end battle Sunday at the Zandvoort Circuit. His Cadillac would develop a hydraulic issue late in the race and while running near the back would have to retire the car on lap 62 of 72. He would leave Holland with another DNF and disappointing 18th-place finish in the Dutch Grand Prix.

AUGUST 25 • ROTOWIRE

Brake Fire Bottas suffered a brake fire and finished 22nd in the Hungarian Grand Prix Formula 1 race at the Hungaroring on Sunday afternoon.

Impact Despite Cadillac bringing brake upgrades to Hungary to combat overheating issues in the car's brakes, Bottas would still have problems. On lap 15 smoke would begin to fill Bottas' cockpit and flames could be seen coming front the front left wheel. He would quickly bring the car to pit lane and the team would extinguish the flames. Bottas would become the first retirement of the day in Budapest and finish a disappointing 22nd-place.

JULY 27 • ROTOWIRE

Engine and Tyre Issues Bottas finished 18th in the Belgian Grand Prix Formula 1 race at the Spa-Francorchamps Circuit on Sunday afternoon.

Impact The Cadillac F1 veteran would start 17th on the grid but a bogged engine start would put him back in the field in the opening lap. Bottas would avoid many on-track incidents and race competitively, but ultimately tyre degradation would hit his race hard. That would limit his ability to climb through the field and at best all Bottas could do was tread water in the lower third of the order. He would cross the finish line a frustrating 18th-place in the Belgian Grand Prix.

JULY 22 • ROTOWIRE

Snaps DNF String Bottas finished 16th in the British Grand Prix Formula 1 race at the Silverstone Circuit on Sunday afternoon.

Impact Bottas would out-qualify Sergio Perez for the first time since Miami so it would be a good start to the weekend at P18 on the grid. He showed good pace throughout but was sort of stuck in no man's land between the Haas and Aston Martin teams. Still, it was a critical data collecting race in sizing up Cadillac's recent aerodynamic upgrades. Bottas was credited with 16th-place at day's end and in the process snapped a three-race DNF string.

JULY 7 • ROTOWIRE

Brake Fire Bottas suffered a brake fire and finished 22nd in the Austrian Grand Prix Formula 1 race at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg on Sunday afternoon.

Impact Despite bringing a technical upgrade package to Austria, it would be a disastrous day for Bottas and Cadillac at the Red Bull Ring. While running in heavy traffic on lap 2, his car's brakes would suddenly catch fire and fill his cockpit with smoke as he entered turn 4. Bottas would bring his stricken car back to pit road where his fires would be extinguished by the crew. This was his third consecutive DNF and reliability issues loom large as F1 heads to the British Grand Prix next round.

JUNE 29 • ROTOWIRE

Another Tough Grand Prix Bottas suffered a mechanical failure and finished 21st in the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix F1 race at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on Sunday.

Impact Braking issues would plague his weekend in practice and qualifying and Bottas would start 20th on the grid as a result. The Cadillac F1 veteran would pit on lap 14 for fresh tyres but soon afterward would develop some sort of mechanical issue. The team would call for him to bring the car to pit lane on lap 16 and retire from the race. It was another tough weekend for Bottas and early retirement from the grand prix.

JUNE 16 • ROTOWIRE

Brake Overheating Bottas suffered a mechanical failure and finished 21st in the Monaco Grand Bearman retired early Prix Formula 1 race at The Circuit de Monaco on Sunday afternoon.

Impact Another tough qualifying session would put Bottas 20th on the starting grid and facing an uphill battle in Monaco. The Cadillac F1 veteran would suffer a failure of brake cooling in the early laps and would have to employ a lift and coast strategy to combat the extreme temperatures. The team would send him to the box on lap 15 and retire the car due to brake overheating. Bottas would become the second DNF of the day following Max Verstappen.

JUNE 9 • ROTOWIRE

5-Second Penalty Bottas finished 16th in the Canadian Grand Prix Formula 1 race at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve on Sunday afternoon.

Impact Bottas started 21st on the grid after a challenging qualifying session on the Canadian circuit. The veteran Cadillac driver would struggle with oversteer and the handling associated with that. Bottas would lose 4 laps to the leaders by the end of the race and it would be compounded by him speeding on pit lane. The stewards would assess a 5-second time penalty for the infraction and that would contribute to his P16 finish in Montreal.

MAY 27 • ROTOWIRE

Drive-Through Penalty Bottas finished 18th in the Miami Grand Prix Formula 1 race at the Miami International Autodrome on Sunday afternoon.

Impact Bottas' day would be marked by lack of pace and severe tyre degradation. He would pit under the lap 6 safety car in hopes of gaining some kind of advantage. However, it would not pan out for the Cadillac driver. Bottas would later pit on lap 21 and exceed pit lane speed during the stop. The stewards would hit him with a drive through penalty a few laps later that would seal his fate. Bottas would ride P18 from there to the finish as the last car running at the end of the Miami Grand Prix.

MAY 5 • ROTOWIRE

Continued Struggles in Japan Bottas finished 19th in the Japanese Grand Prix Formula 1 race at the Suzuka Circuit on Sunday.

Impact The veteran Cadillac driver would have struggles with pace all weekend and qualify poorly for the Japanese Grand Prix staring P20 on the grid. He'd fall back to last place due to being the only driver to start the grand prix on hard tyres. A lap 19 pit stop before the Oliver Bearman safety car would further hamper his efforts. Bottas could only scratch his way back to P19 after a couple driver retirements and would finish two spots behind his teammate, Sergio Perez.

MARCH 31 • ROTOWIRE

Mechanical Failure Bottas suffered a mechanical failure and finished 19th in the Australian Grand Prix Formula 1 race at the Albert Park Circuit on Sunday.

Impact Bottas would start 19th on the grid and find himself deep in a pitched battle between the two Aston Martins in the opening laps. He would pit under the first VSC of the day for fresh tyres on lap 12. Bottas would rejoin P18 and continue to battle between the two Astons. Disaster would strike on lap 19 when Bottas would radio he was having problems, likely to do with the hydraulics. The team would order him to pit lane where his car would become disabled short of the garage stalls. Bottas' early retirement would place him P19 at the end of the day.

MARCH 10 • ROTOWIRE

No Grid Penalty in Australia Cadillac's Bottas was hit with a five-place grid penalty in his final F1 race as a Kick Sauber driver at the end of 2024. However, it has been confirmed that the Finn will not have...

Impact It was rumored that Bottas would have to serve a five-place grid penalty at Australia for an infraction he incurred in his last F1 race. He had collided with Kevin Magnussen at Abu Dhabi in 2024. However, the 12-month limitation to those penalties effectively wipes that out. Bottas will serve no grid penalty prior to the start of this weekend's Australian Grand Prix.

MARCH 5 • ROTOWIRE

Joins Cadillac Formula 1 Team Cadillac have signed Grand Prix winners Sergio Perez and Bottas to be their drivers when the team joins the Formula 1 grid for the first time in 2026.

Impact The veteran Finn brings 246 Formula 1 starts to the table and 10 overall victories for his new team at Cadillac. Bottas' depth of experience at Mercedes will be a big asset as this new and 11th team on the F1 grid gets underway in 2026. Bottas combined with Sergio Perez is really the experience and feedback that Cadillac will need to get their feet under them in their maiden campaign.

AUGUST 26, 2025 • ROTOWIRE

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