Valtteri Bottas believes that his chances of retaining his seat at Sauber into the Audi era have increased with the arrival of Mattia Binotto at the team.
Binotto started this week in his new role as chief operating officer and chief technical officer on August 1, and he will be joined net season by Jonathan Wheatley as team principal. The previous team of Andreas Seidl and Oliver Hoffman has been ousted.
The Binotto news was followed by formal confirmation of Carlos Sainz at Williams, which inevitably has increased the chances of Bottas being retained, although the team is also considering young drivers.
“Obviously Mattia has started,” said Bottas. “Like I mentioned in in Spa, things have reset quite a bit with a new point of communication. So we had a quick talk after Spa, and we continued the discussions this week. That’s where we are at the moment.”
Binotto is understood to rate Bottas highly, having seen what the Finn could do in his Mercedes days alongside Lewis Hamilton.
Asked by formu1a.uno about the Italian’s respect for him Bottas said: “He knows me a little bit, and now we’ve got to know each other better.
“We used to be competitors when I was at Mercedes, and he was at Ferrari. But it seems like he’s got respect for me, and I’ve got respect for him, which is a good starting point for the discussion.”
Bottas indicated that he feels he has more support than he did under Seidl and Hoffman’s leadership.
“It did feel for the last six months or so that I wasn’t the top priority,” he said. “Obviously, there was one signing before me [Nico Hulkenberg], and obviously the team and the management were looking for all the options with sometimes quite little communication.
“But now it feels a bit different. And like I said, there was a clear reset. Now there’s a clear structure at the top, who’s doing what, and I think that’s positive going forward. And Mattia comes from a team that has been super successful.
“He knows what a what a good team really needs. So I think this is good for the future of this team.”
Bottas said Wheatley’s appointment was a positive move by Audi.
“I think he’s a good catch for the team,” he said. “It’s always good to get people from the top teams, and just bringing that new, mindset and more experience. I think that’s really good for the team.
“And also, Mattia so far, he’s only started, so he’s been obviously observing and learning and putting a new kind of structure in place, which again time will show. But I’ve got lots of confidence on Mattia and his ability to do well.”
Bottas acknowledged that Sainz going to Williams had improved his chances: “For sure, it means there’s one driver less. I think it’s a fact that, yes, there are probably bigger chances now. But that’s where we are.
“My priority is being part of Audi. Since the announcement of the brand coming into F1, I’ve always shown my interest to that project.”
“Obviously they make the decision in the end, but they’re evaluating all the options, no doubt, as they as they should. But I would imagine I should be in a in a strong position, but obviously it’s down to Mattia and Audi.”