Valtteri Bottas gives update on Cadillac future amidst Colton Herta rumors

Valtteri Bottas admits that his Cadillac Formula 1 future should be okay amidst swirling speculation that the Finn might not be retained by the American team for next season. Bottas returned to the grid after spending a season on the sidelines with Mercedes as part of Cadillac's new venture into the sport, joining forces with Sergio Perez to create one of the most experienced line-ups on the championship. While Perez had his future confirmed ahead of the Mexico City Grand Prix last weekend, Bottas still awaits confirmation despite initially signing a multi-year contract, as the American squad has not yet triggered an option in his deal to keep him in the seat for 2027.

Speaking ahead of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix this weekend, Bottas addressed questions about his grid status for next year. "In my head, it should be okay," he stated. "You know, that’s what I signed up for, for the long term. And, I haven’t heard anything other than that, so in my head, it should be all good."

Whispers have grown louder that his seat could be claimed by reserve driver and IndyCar winner Colton Herta. Even though the American has had a tough time making an impact in F2 and currently sits 19th in the standings, he has genuinely impressed the team during his Free Practice 1 outings in a Cadillac this year. Herta has already made five FP1 appearances for Cadillac to secure enough Super Licence points for an F1 seat should one open up, with a sixth FP1 session lined up in Sao Paulo where he will take the place of Sergio Perez.

"It kind of makes sense for him because I understood that if he misses the Super Licence this year, then it’s going to be almost impossible to get it," Bottas explained. "And as long as he gets it now, it’s going to be valid for a few years. So I’m pretty sure the team wants to have that just in case, not necessarily for next year. So that’s at least what I hope. But from my side, nothing has changed. The team has told me they don’t want to change anything. So that’s where we are."

All of this comes right on the heels of a rather wild exit from last weekend's Grand Prix for Bottas, whose front-left suspension failed and sent him straight into the barrier at Turn 1. Having recovered from a bruised knee, Bottas maintains total confidence in the team even though a wave of mechanical and reliability failures has forced him to retire from nine Grands Prix so far this season.

"It’s never nice when that kind of thing happens on track," he said. "It shouldn’t happen, but it happened. And the best thing we can do is to understand, find the cause, why it exactly happened and how to make sure that it never happens again. And I believe that is what we’ve done, so that’s why I will trust the car again when I get out there."