When Valtteri Bottas was informed that his contract with Sauber would not be renewed after the 2024 season, it seemed like all doors had closed for him. However, Mercedes opened theirs, relying on his experience with the team to lead them as a reserve driver. He officially joined them at the start of the year, with one of his key responsibilities being mentoring Kimi Antonelli.
One of the best young talents on the grid, Antonelli, at just 18 years old, has had a stellar start to his F1 career, finishing in the points in every race except Bahrain (where he finished P11).
Currently, the Italian driver sits sixth in the standings, one place ahead of Lewis Hamilton—the seven-time world champion he replaced at Mercedes. Interestingly, Hamilton, despite his vast experience, seems to be struggling to get a strong grip at Ferrari. So, what’s making Antonelli stand out, especially considering he’s new to the sport? Does Bottas play a role in this?
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff certainly thinks so, recently shedding light on the role the Finn has been playing in Antonelli’s development.
“Valtteri is a contributor clearly, especially on those smooth tarmacs, he was a superstar back at Mercedes,” Wolff explained in a conversation with Sky Sports. “And he is coaching him (Antonelli), Kimi is listening“.
“Good job mate”
High praise from Valtteri Bottas for the beginning of Kimi Antonelli’s rookie season pic.twitter.com/RVLXLvAhQ5
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) April 14, 2025
Wolff then praised Antonelli for his open-mindedness, explaining how some F1 drivers “don’t think they can learn from others“.
The 53-year-old added that one of the key areas where Bottas has helped Antonelli is in understanding how to better manage the tires and bring them in to extract the most out of them during qualifying and the race.
“Kimi is open minded. They talk about how to handle the tires, how to bring them in. And Valtteri seems to enjoy himself, whilst, of course, seeking another race, another opportunity, but we love him, he’s doing the sim work.”
With regulation changes set to shake up the grid next year, Bottas is also working hard to make sure Mercedes comes out on top and finds its way back to the front of the grid.
“He’s putting in the hours, he’s developing next year’s car,” Wolff concluded.
This goes to show that Bottas is still keen on returning to the F1 grid and will hope to secure a race seat next year, especially with Cadillac set to join the sport as the eleventh team.
