Valtteri Bottas admits ‘he was in denial’ about beating Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes

Valtteri Bottas drove for Mercedes alongside Lewis Hamilton for five years, from 2017 to 2021, taking ten race wins.

Valtteri Bottas admits ‘he was in denial’ about beating Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes

Valtteri Bottas [L] Lewis Hamilton [R] (images via IMAGO)

Valtteri Bottas enjoyed a five-year stint at Mercedes, replacing Lewis Hamilton‘s retiring rival Nico Rosberg to partner the Briton. Bottas won ten races with Mercedes from his time with them from 2017 to 2021, when George Russell took his place. The Finnish driver never fought for the title with Hamilton, never close enough in performance to compete with the seven-time world champion.

Hamilton has won a staggering 82 races with the Brackley-based outfit, more than eight times Bottas’s tally. In an interview, the Finn said that he was always in ‘denial’ during his Mercedes stint, believing before every campaign that he could potentially fight for the World Championship. Bottas said he only came to terms with his inability to match Hamilton through a season near the end of his time with Mercedes.

I was in denial for almost five years because every year, I wanted to get back to the season and then fight for the title and I had to believe in myself. It was only when I knew that I was leaving the team then that I noticed that I was a bit more fine with certain things.
Valtteri Bottas told motorsport.com
YouTube video

Valtteri Bottas moved to Alfa Romeo for the 2022 season, partnering the rookie Zhou Guanyu. Outperforming the Chinese driver in both seasons of their partnership, the Finn is enjoying a comfortable role with Sauber. Bottas scored ten points in 2023, placing him in 15th in the standings, three places ahead of Zhou with six points scored.

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Valtteri Bottas claims former teammate Lewis Hamilton is too talented and hardworking

Valtteri concluded his time as Lewis Hamilton’s teammate after the 2021 season. Bottas has since moved to the Sauber-run Alfa Romeo, but the two old teammates are still good friends.

Lewis Hamilton at the 2023 FIA Prize gala
Lewis Hamilton at the 2023 FIA Prize Gala (Via IMAGO)

The Finnish driver failed to outperform Hamilton even once during his time with Mercedes but helped him to win four straight championships in a row. Bottas believes that Lewis Hamilton is still the most proficient driver on the current F1 grid, despite not winning a single race in the past two years. The 34-year-old claimed that Hamilton is ‘annoyingly talented’ and puts in more effort than he is given credit for.

He’s annoyingly talented! On top of that, he works way harder than people actually think outside the race weekends.
Valtteri Bottas said, via formula1.com

Lewis Hamilton is yet to take victory following the penultimate race of the 2021 season in Saudi Arabia. Despite fifteen podiums in the last two seasons of F1 and a third-place finish in the 2023 standings, Hamilton is yet to stand on top of the podium for a record 104th time.

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