Bottas Dismisses Exit Rumors, Confirms Cadillac F1 Contract for Next Season

Valtteri Bottas has firmly denied rumors suggesting he might leave his F1 team, Cadillac, before the end of the season, calling them "complete nonsense." He stated that as long as he knows his situation and communicates with the team, external speculation doesn't affect him. Bottas also confirmed his contract for the upcoming season, asserting that the team fully supports him and he will "definitely be here next year."

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So long as I know my situation and am in constant contact with the team, people can speculate whatever they want. It doesn't change my life.

The rumors stem from Cadillac's challenging season, which has seen more difficulties than anticipated. Sergio Pérez has often outperformed Bottas in several race weekends, fueling speculation about potential driver changes. Bottas himself acknowledged the team's struggles, admitting that "there hasn't really been a race without at least one problem." He also spoke candidly about the team's internal issues, emphasizing the need to "improve quality and assembly," noting that car construction has sometimes been "too rushed."

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I know what my contract says, and the team supports me 100 percent. I will definitely be here next year.

Despite the team's performance issues, Bottas refused to directly compare himself to teammate Sergio Pérez, who has shown stronger results this season. Bottas deemed such comparisons "pointless" given the circumstances and problems the team has faced. Team principal Graeme Lowdon, when asked about the driver situation, offered a more general response, stating he speaks with both drivers regularly and that "both Valtteri and Checo have been invaluable to the team."

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There hasn't really been a race without at least one problem.

Lowdon specifically praised Pérez's strong start to the season, calling him "exceptionally good." However, he did not offer the same categorical guarantee for next season that Bottas did. While Lowdon's comments were general and did not directly address driver selection for next year, the difference in tone between Bottas's certainty and Lowdon's more cautious remarks was noticeable. Bottas remains optimistic, however, believing the car will significantly improve within two months, based on planned upgrades he has seen.

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We have to improve quality and assembly. The assembly of the car has sometimes been too rushed.