The Bottas to Alfa Romeo links seem to be getting stronger after the Hungarian GP.
The race at Budapest saw Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas initiate a massive collision spree, which saw multiple drivers including himself retire. That just summed up the season he is having with Mercedes, which is a poor one.
Bottas has been heavily linked with a move away from Mercedes, having entered the final year of his contract. He has been linked with a return to old team Williams. However, another speculation has gained traction (pun not intended), and it is the Bottas to Alfa Romeo.
F1 expert and Auto Motor und Sport reporter Michael Schmidt is among those who feel the Bottas to Alfa Romeo rumour could become a reality. He reckons it is in fact more realistic and likely to happen than his reunion with Williams. Further proof came in the form of Alfa Romeo Team Principal Frederic Vasseur being spotted in the Mercedes hospitality.
“At the moment, Alfa Romeo looks more likely than Williams. I think Vasseur was seen in the Mercedes hospitality 10 times last weekend,” Schmidt said.
“Williams are looking for an experienced driver (if Russell ends up leaving). If it’s not Bottas, I think Nico Hülkenberg has a good chance,” he concluded.
The speculations heated up when Bottas’ manager, Didier Coton, was spotted at the Hungaroring. Bottas was quizzed about what his manager was doing in Hungary, to which he replied, “I can’t tell you, but they are working.”
Decisions
Alfa Romeo will have to choose when the next season rolls around. Bottas would be a massive coup, but they also have to consider their star kid Theo Pourchaire. Schmidt gave his thoughts on the prodigy, and weighed in on his chances to make it to F1.
“The team think very highly of him,” Schmidt said.
“There are people in the team who say he’s the new Prost. The question is whether they will promote him to F1 after just one year in F2,” he concluded.
Whatever happens, the future looks bright for Alfa Romeo. As for Bottas, we will see if a move to the Italian team happens. If it does, let’s hope it works out for all parties involved.
Read more: George Russell reacts to news of Valtteri Bottas potentially taking over 2022 seat