Things look very different for Valtteri Bottas in 2025.
Bottas will be dropped by Sauber at the end of the 2024 season, losing his F1 race seat for the first time since 2012.
With no openings available in 2025, the 36-year-old Finn returned to Mercedes, where he won 10 races as a reserve driver as Lewis Hamilton’s teammate between 2017 and 2021.
Reserve drivers in F1 play an important role for the team, acting as an effective replacement for the first-choice driver. They are ready to replace a regular Grand Prix driver at a moment’s notice if he is absent due to illness or injury.
There are many examples to draw from, most recently Oliver Bearman replacing Carlos Sainz at the 2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
But what does the life of a reserve driver in F1 actually entail other than waiting in the wings as backup?
“It’s a lot different than the last 12 years,” Bottas told Crash.net in an exclusive interview at the Singapore Grand Prix.
“It was great to work with a team that I had worked with before, so it was natural for us to start working together, but I definitely missed racing.
“Probably the biggest thing for me from this weekend is just wanting to get back in the car, but at the same time I learned a lot.”
What kind of work does a reserve driver actually do?
Bottas is fully integrated into Mercedes
Reserve drivers have a wide range of responsibilities, including but not limited to working in the simulator, attending meetings, completing tire tests, making commitments to sponsors and, in the case of Bottas, appearing in engaging and entertaining social media videos.
Reserve drivers are integrated into the core of the team during Grand Prix weekends. Duties include conducting interviews, attending partner events, and participating in engineering meetings before and after track sessions.
“Some weekends are busier than others,” Bottas explained. “Similar to this weekend, it (Singapore Grand Prix) is very busy today with quite a few interviews and some events as well.
“This is usually one of the events that our partners are active in, so there are a lot of different events going on in the city throughout the weekend and I attend the events as well.
“But at the same time, I’m in all kinds of pre-event meetings, talking about technical things and the weekend ahead. I’m also in all the engineering meetings during the race weekend, before and after the sessions.”
“I also participate in it, just to keep up to date with what’s going on. I know what’s going on and what the goals are in case I want to participate. Some weekends are a little bit messy, and other weekends are actually pretty flat.”
Bottas has also acted as something of a mentor to rookie Kimi Antonelli, using his wealth of experience to guide the young driver through his sometimes tumultuous first season in F1.
Singapore was a perfect example of where Bottas could draw on his experience and pass on some tips to the 19-year-old Italian as he prepares to race at a new circuit.
“With you, we might be able to catch up on certain things,” Bottas said. “This weekend is a track he’s never raced at before. So we’re going to go to the track together after this and teach him my tricks, things he can try. I hope that helps his learning curve this weekend.”
These tips clearly paid off, as Antonelli maintained a strong fourth place in Azerbaijan, arresting his recent disastrous slump in form.
Bottas supports Antonelli through rookie F1 season
Adapting to life without racing
Many reserve drivers have never raced in F1, or don’t have the opportunity to do so, but that’s not the case with Bottas, and his situation is quite unique.
Bottas went from being a central member of the F1 grid, where he competed in around 250 races, to observing the action from the sidelines, or more precisely from the back of the Mercedes garage.
As a 20-time pole sitter and 67-time podium finisher, this is fundamentally not the role Bottas wanted.
Bottas made it clear from the start that his return to a reserve role was primarily with a view to remaining in the F1 circus to secure a full-time return.
Bottas, who ultimately achieved his goal by landing one of two drives with the new Cadillac F1 team in 2026, knows the experience was valuable. But that doesn’t mean this transition wasn’t difficult to navigate.
“It was tough, but it was something I had to do and I was ready for it,” Bottas said.
“Obviously it worked out. I got my seat for next year. That was my biggest goal, always to get back in the seat, so it definitely worked out.”
The closest Bottas came to returning to the F1 race seat was the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, when George Russell fell ill and suffered a rude awakening in Baku on Friday morning.
“I think it was pretty close. It wasn’t until an hour before FP1 that he decided to try. From then on, you have to decide on the pedal set-up, the seat, etc. Until then, he was ready. He had been preparing well for the day with the engineers.”
“Basically, I was still asleep when Paul (Lipke), the travel agent, knocked on my door and woke me up. He said, ‘I have to get ready.’ I thought, ‘Okay, let’s go,’ but it didn’t happen.”
Although there are no competitive races on Bottas’ 2025 calendar, he did have some opportunities to drive an F1 car.
Bottas drove a 2023 McLaren in Barcelona, attended the Goodwood Festival of Speed in July and recently completed a demo run of Mercedes’ 2022 W13 in South Korea.
Bottas is still behind the wheel of an F1 car
What Bottas learned
Above all, 2025 has given Bottas a new perspective on F1.
Although it has been frustrating at times, Bottas has accepted the role of reserve driver and has approached it positively. It gave him valuable experience and allowed him to reset and refocus.
“I think this year has given me an even greater appreciation for the sport, and also how lucky we are to have these 20 drivers on the grid,” Bottas explained.
“It’s a very unique sport and when you’re competing you’re focused on yourself and you have goals, but sometimes it’s hard to see the big picture and how great the sport actually is.”
And as Bottas discovered, there are some benefits to not having the demands placed on a full-time F1 driver.
“I’ve been trying to make the most of it and of course trying to enjoy life,” Bottas said. “For example, on a Saturday night, when I know I won’t be able to drive anymore, I can relax a little more.
“I’ve discovered some new restaurants. I’ve found some pubs that I wouldn’t normally go to. So I’m trying to have fun and be relaxed, but also be prepared.”
There were some fun things along the way.
Bottas also feels there is now a wider awareness of how F1 teams operate and run weekend races, which will be particularly helpful for Cadillac’s debut season.
When asked exactly what the biggest thing he learned as a reserve driver, Bottas replied: “I think it was actually seeing firsthand how the team operates in the garage and listening to millions of channels of communication during qualifying and races.”
“As a driver, you don’t hear it or you don’t see how everything is coordinated. It made me appreciate teamwork more and all the team members on the team and the work they do. So it was good.”
“I think my experience this year, seeing firsthand how this team works behind the scenes, will also help us build the team and give us guidance on where to go with different things.”
With a seat for next year’s full-time F1 race in his bag, Bottas’ attention can finally start returning to doing what he loves best.
“I feel like Melbourne can’t come soon enough,” he admitted. “I miss the races every weekend. I really want to go to the races.”