Valtteri Bottas will remain at Mercedes in 2021 with a new deal having been agreed in principle, Autosport is the first to reveal the breaking news on Monday afternoon.
While a final contract has yet to be signed off, both team and driver have agreed terms to continue their partnership for one more year i.e 2021.
Both Bottas and Mercedes has been working on The agreement since last few days, significant developments happen after Mercedes CEO Ola Kallenius hinted an unchanged line-up for next season during his visit to the Austrian Grand Prix.
“We’ll stay with our two boys,” he told Sky Germany.
The deal for Bottas will now clears the way for Mercedes to initiate contract talks with Lewis Hamilton, who has yet to agree terms for next season.The six time champion expected to stay with Mercedes at least for next year.
Speaking before the Styrian GP weekend, Bottas said that he hoped an early deal could be agreed to help remove a potential distraction from his efforts to win the championship.
Asked about the chances of a swift deal being agreed he said: “I really hope so.
“Obviously it’s a very special season starting so late. So, the timing is not really relevant to other seats and we’ve only done one race. On the other hand there’s no rush, but also yes, time will fly by quickly and as soon as we know it, it’s going to be the end of the season. So yeah, hopefully we can do something with that and get that kind of out of my mind.
“As we’ve seen, if things drag on, it’s never a benefit. So, we can learn from that. We’ll be taking actions based on what I learned.”
What Next for Sebastian?
Sebastian Vettels hope of driving for Mercedes for 2021 season dealt with big blow after this news. Vettel only left with mid-field teams to secure a seat for Next season. It will be interesting next couple of weeks to know the fate of four time champion.
