There has been strong speculation in recent weeks that Williams driver Valtteri Bottas will take Kimi Raikkonen’s seat at Ferrari next year.
Italian newspaper Corriere dello Sport seem confident that the deal is already done.
Bottas has shown great consistency over the past 18 months and rarely makes a mistake – unlike the man he is expected to replace, Kimi Raikkonen.
The problem with Bottas is that he lacks the cutting edge required to seize an opportunity to achieve a pole position or race victory.
Lack of Cutting Edge
The first missed opportunity for Bottas came during qualifying at the 2014 Austrian Grand Prix, the Finn missed out on pole position as he made a mistake in the final sector.
Similarly, Bottas made a key mistake during qualifying of the Russian Grand Prix in the final sector after setting a quicker middle sector than the Mercedes pair.
Most recently at the British Grand Prix, Bottas’ inability to overtake team-mate Felipe Massa ultimately cost him an opportunity to win the race.
Inability to dominate Massa
Another reason for my reservations when it comes to Valtteri Bottas is his inability to dominate and out-perform Felipe Massa on a consistent basis. Maybe I am not giving Felipe Massa enough credit for his strong from in the second half of 2014 and opening half of 2015 but his inability to beat Massa on a regular basis suggests he will have a very tough time against the most successful driver of the current era – Sebastian Vettel.
The Perfect Number 2 Driver
Ultimately Valtteri Bottas will prove to be the perfect number 2 driver for Ferrari, the Finn rarely makes a mistake and is very consistent. Massa and Bottas are very evenly matched in terms of speed suggesting the latter will struggle to match Vettel in outright speed. Unlike fellow countryman Kimi Raikkonen, Bottas is likely to demand a cheaper salary and is a long-term prospect for the Scuderia.
Without a doubt, Bottas is an upgrade on Kimi Raikkonen, but so is former Ferrari driver Felipe Massa.
Bottas is a safe pair of hands, he will bring the points home but more importantly, will not upset Ferrari’s golden boy.
Images Courtesy of Williams F1 Team
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