Destined for greatness
Valtteri Bottas is the latest in a long line of Finland’s great motorsport talents. Born in Nastola, Finland, on August 28th, 1989, Valtteri had a distinguished career in the junior formulas, becoming only the second driver to win both the Formula Renault Eurocup and the Formula Renault Northern European Cup in the same year, in 2008, and following this by winning the Masters of Formula 3 in both 2009 and 2010 – the first to achieve this double-triumph feat. A promotion to the GP3 Series saw Valtteri win four races and claim the title, demonstrating his readiness for the biggest stage of motorsport – under the eye of Frédéric Vasseur.
On the biggest stage
Debut in Formula One duly took place in 2013, with Williams, where Valtteri emerged as one of the brightest talents in the sport. Strong seasons in 2014 and 2015 saw him collect several podiums, and at the end of 2016 he was called up to Mercedes to replace the new World Champion, Nico Rosberg. There, the Finn would play a crucial role in securing five constructors’ titles, winning his first race in Sochi in 2017 and adding nine more first places to his tally, alongside a total of 58 podiums for the Brackley team.
A new chapter
Ten wins, 17 pole positions and 63 podiums are a strong introduction for Valtteri, World Championship runner-up in 2019 and 2020. A move to Alfa Romeo in 2022 marked a new page for the talent from Nastola. Valtteri used his experience at the competitive end of Formula One to help the team move up the rankings, culminating with P6 in the standings at the end of the season. Now at Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber, Valtteri is ready and raring to go.