Mercedes second seat?

[S griffin]

Well what is Toto waiting for? Let's here the confirmation

[Greem]

Now official. Hamilton & Bottas at Merc, Massa & Stroll at Williams.

In other unsurprising news, I had a sandwich for lunch.

[old man]

Pascal to Sauber completes that picture

[billy bleach]

Originally Posted by old man

Pascal to Sauber completes that picture

Nearly - Lowe

[S griffin]

So now it's all confirmed, we can see what Bottas is made of

[Akrapovic]

Originally Posted by Greem

In other unsurprising news, I had a sandwich for lunch.

Frankly, the sandwich is more interesting. Did it have cheese? Was it smoked cheese? It should be!

[Greem]

Originally Posted by Akrapovic

Frankly, the sandwich is more interesting. Did it have cheese? Was it smoked cheese? It should be!

Get out of my office, you fiend!

[F1Pete]

Regardless how disinteresting everyone thinks the news is, everyone will be very interested on race weekend(s).


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[MattV]

Has it been reported anywhere what Williams stand to gain from the deal?

Lowe? Free engines? There has to be aome sort of trade off.

[JeremySmith]

Originally Posted by F1Pete

Regardless how disinteresting everyone thinks the news is, everyone will be very interested on race weekend(s).


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Even if its just another thing for some people to whine about...

[F1Guy]

Both Bottas and Massa have only a one year deal. Massa I can understand, but Bottas??

Apparently, Bottas' contract has a lot of performance clauses that if not met, Mercedes has the option not to re-sign him for 2018.

I think we're about to see the next best number 2 driver. Bottas to take over from Webber, who took the title from Massa, who took the title from Barrichello.

[Moneyseeker]

Seat warmer whilst they wait for Vettel in 2018 IMO.....

[BertMk2]

Originally Posted by Moneyseeker

Seat warmer whilst they wait for Vettel in 2018 IMO.....

Ah but will he replace Bottas or 'Da Ham'? Surely Hammy will want to drive for Ferrari at some point? #blessed A straight Vettel / hamster swap seems likely.

[justracing]

Originally Posted by F1Guy

who took the title from Barrichello.

Come back Ruby we love you

[bjohnsonsmith]

Originally Posted by BertMk2

Ah but will he replace Bottas or 'Da Ham'? Surely Hammy will want to drive for Ferrari at some point? #blessed A straight Vettel / hamster swap seems likely.

So far those WDCs who have recently gone to Ferrari, have been dogged by a car that's just off the boil. I doubt Lulu would want to make the move to Ferrari unless he was pretty much guaranteed some success and a big fat pay check, just in case it doesn't quite work out.

[F1Pete]

The one year deal will keep options open for Merc and put a lot of pressure on Bottas. Not necessarily pressure to choke, but pressure to race, overtake, qualify, focus on car set up and feedback etc.

It only makes sense to have a one year contract considering there wasn't much time from Rosberg's exit to filling the seat with the options out there.

I am going to give Bottas much more faith and credit than many of you guys out there. I believe we will be in for a nice surprise (not a nice surprise for Hammy fans).


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[chunterer]

Bottas was more than a match for Ricciardo in Formula Renault and has been a title contender in F3 and GP3. The only thing holding him back thus far has been an out of date Williams chassis!

He will be fine!

[wolfhound]

I am surprised that Bottas only has a one year deal given the amount of effort had to put in to get him into the Mercedes seat.

[BSchneiderFan]

Originally Posted by BertMk2

Ah but will he replace Bottas or 'Da Ham'? Surely Hammy will want to drive for Ferrari at some point? #blessed A straight Vettel / hamster swap seems likely.

I think "likely" is overstating it pretty heavily. Can't see Hamilton leaving Mercedes unless they quit F1 or suffer a steep decline.

[BertMk2]

Originally Posted by BSchneiderFan

I think "likely" is overstating it pretty heavily. Can't see Hamilton leaving Mercedes unless they quit F1 or suffer a steep decline.

Hammy has nothing to prove at Mercedes and a move to Ferrari will suit his Instagram lifestyle nicely - just imagine all those tastefully posed photos with a different Ferrari in each.....

If Hamsta thinks that Mercedes 'disrespect him' at any point in the coming season I can see him jumping ship regardless of the cars performance. Ferrari may or may not be able to offer a competitive car but they're unmatched for global fanbase - will Snoop Hammy Hamm be able to resist that draw?

[chillibowl]

Originally Posted by wolfhound

I am surprised that Bottas only has a one year deal given the amount of effort had to put in to get him into the Mercedes seat.

a one year deal is a bit odd...Does Verstappen have a RB contract for 2018 onwards?

[steve_r]

A one year deal for Bottas, with the option to extend makes perfect sense. Whilst general perceived wisdom seems to be that Bottas is pretty good and has done OK in the Williams, his team mates have been Maldonado (make your own conclusion) and Massa (who was schooled by Alonso year after year).

I would say that Bottas came out on top against his teammates, but it was not such a clear domination.

I think that Bottas has done enough to deserve a season in the Merc. I somehow doubt he would have got the drive if Rosberg had decided is the summer that he was going to retire. He will almost definitely win races this season coming (assuming that Merc produce yet another car that is class of the field).

If Bottas does not do the car justice, then Mercedes have the option to go and get another top line driver instead without getting sued like Sauber.

[F1Pete]

I guess the one year deal leaves options open for 2018 once other big name drivers are on the open market.

This puts all the pressure into Bottas and the ball is totally in his court. Basically it is up him to make the decision for Mercedes whether or not they keep him or let him go. He is in a car where he will be expected to win races vs hoping to win.

Mercedes has left the door open, but it is up to Bottas to close it. This leads to a hypothetical question...if Bottas performs well and gets a few wins and keeps Hammy on his toes, would Merc still sign Vettel or Alonso if they showed interest? What kind of season would Bottas have to have to thwart being shown a friendly exit ( other than winning the drivers championship)?

With those driver options out there (along with Ocon and Werhlein if they have stellar seasons) pretty much can make Bottas feel "temporary". It sounds like it can be a daunting task regardless how well he does. I wonder if anything he can do will be "good enough".


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[Richard C]

Originally Posted by F1Pete

I guess the one year deal leaves options open for 2018 once other big name drivers are on the open market.

This puts all the pressure into Bottas and the ball is totally in his court. Basically it is up him to make the decision for Mercedes whether or not they keep him or let him go. He is in a car where he will be expected to win races vs hoping to win.

Mercedes has left the door open, but it is up to Bottas to close it.

I agree completely. Bottas is a seasoned driver with promise, but is NOT a prior champion or a hot young that has a number of race wins (Daniel Ricciardo or Max Verstappen). Mercedes is the place to be, so they have the luxury of not "having" to sign for more than a single year. Put in performance and extension clauses. If it goes well, Mercedes keeps him and extends the contract. If not, then they let him go. Its all up to Bottas to prove his worth. And frankly he is a lucky man to be where he is.

Originally Posted by F1Pete

This leads to a hypothetical question...if Bottas performs well and gets a few wins and keeps Hammy on his toes, would Merc still sign Vettel or Alonso if they showed interest? What kind of season would Bottas have to have to thwart being shown a friendly exit ( other than winning the drivers championship)?

Clearly if I was Bottas I would want to know the answer to that as well. I suspect there are many factors.

* Is the 2017 a good enough car to not cloud the outcome (fast and reliable). I suspect this will not be an issue?

* Finishing delta between the two Mercedes drivers (Hamilton, Bottas 1, 2 finish or something else)

* Is Bottas beating Hamilton on occasion?

* Is Bottas fitting in well with the team (internal feedback)

I think "good enough" (without factoring in potential top tier replacements) would be to be finishing the vast majority of races without gaps in the finishing order between Bottas and Hamilton. In short, outside of mechanical and reliability issues, if they can finish 1, 2 "most" of the time, he is probably safe?

Originally Posted by F1Pete

With those driver options out there (along with Ocon and Werhlein if they have stellar seasons) pretty much can make Bottas feel "temporary". It sounds like it can be a daunting task regardless how well he does. I wonder if anything he can do will be "good enough".

In this scenario, I suspect he would have to be actively challenging Hamilton for wins and beating him on occasion to be considered safe. If he and Hamilton are able to dominate, and they are able to work well as teammates, why put someone else in the seat even if they are a Vettel or Alonso? IMHO, the ONLY reason to do that would be if they knew Hamilton was about to retire and they wanted a prior champion on the team.

Richard

[Beryl]

Originally Posted by steve_r

I would say that Bottas came out on top against his teammates, but it was not such a clear domination.

Except Maldonado. In 2013, the score was 9-5 Maldonado when both Williams finished and Pastor was usually the faster driver on race day.

Let's not sell our favourite Venezuelan short here.