2026-02-21 12:30:21
Valtteri Bottas believes that Cadillac have timed their F1 entry perfectly.
The Finnish driver is returning to the sport with the new team this season and believes that the introduction of new regulations will give the outfit the chance to start on an even keel with their competitors.
Bottas told Motor Sport magazine: “The timing is great. There’s new things for every team – new chassis, new tyres, new power unit, that’s the same for everybody. So everybody will be learning a lot in the first part of the year, and everyone will have some kind of issues here and there.”
The 10-time race winner plans to use the pre-season tests to start “bonding” with his new engineers and mechanics.
He said: “There’s many people I need to get know better, and that’s one part of this sport – you have to work with so many different personalities from different backgrounds, and make the most out of those people around you. That process has already started!”
Bottas returns to a race seat after a season as reserve driver for Mercedes and he confessed that it “wasn’t easy” to sit on the sidelines.
He said: “Watching from the side wasn’t easy. I got the confirmation last year: watching every race, I was missing the racing more and more. I still have that will and fire to race, and I have still more to give to this sport.
“I was trying to be as useful as I can at the weekends, not just being the reserve but very involved in all the meetings, and trying to help Kimi (Antonelli) the youngster.
“And I got to do some testing – five or six days in the end – which was important for me every now and then to jump in the car and get some laps.”
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