Mercedes F1 star privately preparing for McLaren switch

Valtteri Bottas and Kimi Antonelli — Photo: © IMAGO

F1 News & Gossip

Mercedes F1 star privately preparing for McLaren switch

Valtteri Bottas has not given up hopes of a full-time return to the F1 grid

Kerry Violet F1 News Editor

F1 editor and journalist covering motorsport since 2024.

Friday 28 March 2025 18:55

A star of the Mercedes Formula 1 team has revealed a temporary switch to McLaren after taking to the track for crucial tests.

Valtteri Bottas returned to the Silver Arrows for 2025 as a reserve driver after being dropped by former team Sauber last year.

The Finnish racer appears to have adapted well to the new role, taking rookie driver Kimi Antonelli under his wing as part of his multi-faceted position with Mercedes.

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As test and reserve driver for his former team, Bottas is expected to participate in test sessions, conduct simulator work and most importantly, stay in shape in case his expertise are needed to replace either Antonelli or his team-mate George Russell at a grand prix weekend across the 24-race season.

Bottas hops in McLaren F1 car for private test

Another interesting element to Bottas' role has seen him switch to a McLaren this week, as the 35-year-old jumped in the papaya machinery in a behind-closed-doors test to prepare for a team switch in future if needed.

Bottas got out on track at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya behind the wheel of the 2023 MCL60 to prepare for the potential case in the future that he may need to deputise for the papaya team's driver lineup of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

As a Mercedes reserve, Bottas not only could be called up should injury, a ban or sickness hit the Mercedes garage, but also for the team's customer outfits who use the Mercedes engine.

Aston Martin, McLaren and Williams all use Mercedes engines, and while Aston Martin have a strong reserve driver setup of their own, the latter two F1 teams could call on Bottas if needed throughout the season.

The Finnish racer previously competed for Mercedes alongside seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton from 2017 until the conclusion of the 2021 season, and has a strong understanding of their power units. During that time, Bottas contributed vitally to the team's domination of the constructors' championship, where Mercedes claimed the crown for eight consecutive years between 2014 and 2021.

The reserve star took to Instagram to share his joy at getting back in a Mercedes-powered F1 car, posting a video of him racing around the Spanish track captioned: "Nice to be back with Mercedes power today."

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A post shared by Valtteri Bottas (@valtteribottas)

Written by

Kerry Violet - F1 News Editor

Having graduated from the University of Sheffield with a 2:1 in Journalism in 2022, Kerry continued her pursuit of finding a full-time position in motorsport through work with the F1 Arcade in London, where she got to meet true fans of the sport and make a live grand prix watch party memorable for them. It was here that she confirmed her dream of combining her background in journalism and love of motorsport, going on to volunteer with the female-led platform Empoword Journalism. Having completed stints as a screen editor and sports editor, Kerry landed her first F1-specific editorial role with GPFans and has thoroughly enjoyed continuing to work closely with the sport ever since. The access GPFans offers Kerry has allowed her to interview big names such as Naomi Schiff and David Coulthard and given her experiences she could only have dreamt of as a young F1 fan.

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McLaren George Russell Kimi Antonelli Valtteri Bottas Mercedes Formula 1 team