Wolff has 'no doubt' that Bottas will improve in 2018

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has thrown support behind Valtteri Bottas and has 'no doubt we will see a better Valtteri in 2018' as the Finn looks to improve on a third-place finish in the championship rankings this season and potentially challenge his team-mate, Lewis Hamilton, for the title.

Bottas made his debut for Mercedes last season after Nico Rosberg retired from the Silver Arrows shortly after winning the championship, and it was an up and down campaign overall for the Finn as although he won three Grand Prix races, he never really looked like a title contender.

There has been speculation surrounding his future, with Mercedes reportedly looking at Daniel Ricciardo as a potential candidate for a seat in 2019, but Wolff has backed his driver to improve this upcoming campaign.

“We have seen some highlights in Sochi and in Austria and then after the summer Lewis came back very strong and the step that Lewis made up, Valtteri went backwards,” Wolff told ESPN.

“He recovered at the end of the season and he is a Finn with a strong never-give-up mentality – Sisu – and I expect him to come back strong with all the learning he has done during the season against the best Formula 1 driver of the current day and age.

I think he’s the first one who wants to prove it to himself. He knows the deficits he had during the season and he knows where he had advantages.”

Wolff has managed the career of Bottas for a few years now, and knows his driver has the character to enjoy better fortune in 2018.

“Valtteri, I’ve known for ten years and ten years ago a little kid showed up in the winter in my office with a little pullover, no jacket, no father with him, and he has a super-strong will, an iron will and character, and I have no doubt we will see a better Valtteri in 2018.”