Valtteri Bottas: Mattia Binotto's arrival at Sauber 'resets' contract talks

The Finnish driver, a 10-time race winner, began the year with optimism about securing a contract for the 2025 season. However, as the season unfolds, Bottas's outlook has grown increasingly grim.

Despite his considerable experience and past successes, Bottas is not viewed as a frontrunner for any of the remaining seats for the 2025 season.

His situation has been further complicated by changes within his current team, Sauber. Bottas had already started exploring alternatives before the year began, driven by a feeling of not being central to Sauber's future plans, despite his years with the team.

The recent appointment of Mattia Binotto as Sauber's team principal has introduced a new strategic direction. Under Binotto's leadership, Sauber have been actively engaging with other drivers, with Carlos Sainz and Esteban Ocon emerging as preferred options over Bottas.

"It is going to reset a bit the talks," said Bottas.

"Because we have previously been in communication with Andreas [Seidl] and Oliver [Hoffmann], and now it's Mattia [Binotto].

"For sure, that will change some things. So we need to speak.

"It's a bit of a complicated situation, but let's see."

Even though Sauber missed out on securing either Sainz or Ocon, there has been no immediate push to retain Bottas.

With the previous management at Sauber reluctant to extend Bottas's contract and no guarantee that Binotto will offer him a new deal, Bottas faces an uncertain future both at Sauber and in Formula 1.