Valtteri Bottas formed a formidable partnership at Mercedes with Lewis Hamilton, helping the team significantly in their period of dominance in his five year spell with the team.
The Finn won ten races with the Silver Arrows but never quite managed to put together a title challenge that could rival his teammate, before moving to Alfa Romeo for 2022.
The 33-year-old had to watch from further back in the race as Hamilton was passed by Max Verstappen in controversial circumstances in Abu Dhabi last year, an overtake which gave the Dutchman his maiden world title, and Bottas believes this heartbreak is one of the reasons Hamilton still has the drive to continue.
“I think he’s not satisfied with obviously the end of last year, and also this year,” he said when asked about the rumours surrounding Hamilton’s new contract talks.
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“He seems like he is still enjoying it, and I think recently he’s been back at his level again. Why not [stay]? He loves racing.”
The seven-time world champion has endured a difficult campaign in 2022, not yet being able to avenge the ending to last season, currently winless going into the final two races of the season.
Toto Wolff has confirmed that contracts talks will begin in the off season, with the pair usually conducting their negotiations outside of the race season, with a multi-year deal expected to be signed to see the Brit potentially racing into his 40’s.
Bottas himself has spoken recently about his desire to continue racing for the foreseeable future, with the Finn eyeing a seat with Audi when they complete their takeover of Sauber in 2026.
“Obviously, every driver’s individual,” he said.
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“I think it’s a lot up to you; if you still want it, if you still want to be competitive, you can.”
Bottas got off to a flying start with Alfa Romeo, finishing sixth at the season opening in Bahrain, however the other teams have caught up with the Finn’s team, seeing them struggle to be as competitive as they were in the earlier stages of the season since the summer break.
The ten-time race winner has expressed his happiness to be a part of the team last week, with the driver saying that he is enjoying the security of being on a multi-year contract, and not being as much in the spotlight as he was at Mercedes, allowing him to focus on himself.