Exclusive: Bottas claims people in Formula 1 have 'short memories' as they fight to save powertrain for 2025

Valtteri Bottas has claimed that some people in Formula 1 have a “short memory” as he tries to save his place on the grid beyond the current 2024 season.

Bottas has entered the final season of his contract with Sauber and is awaiting a decision on whether the team wants to keep him as it prepares to transform into Audi.

The Finn has expressed his desire to get involved once the German brand enters Formula 1 in 2026, in a bid to revitalize a squad that has suffered regression since Bottas' arrival in 2022.

Sauber took advantage of a regulation realignment in 2022 and scored 51 points over nine rounds, but was unable to maintain this as it has picked up 20 points in the 50 events since then.

The Hinwil-based squad's ongoing plight meant they ended up as the only team to score a single point in 2024, as they struggled with an uncompetitive C45 car.

When Bottas was asked to highlight the reasons for Sauber's problems on track this season, he reiterated his belief that the turmoil behind the scenes had been an obstacle.

“I think there are several reasons why we didn't, let's say, achieve the goals,” Bottas told Motorsport Week in an exclusive interview in Zandvoort last month.

“Of course there was the second leadership change in the team recently and I think the team has been trying to structure it for a better future for some time.

“Now again with a new leader, let’s say. So things weren’t that stable and I think that can always reflect a little bit on the performance on the track.”

Meanwhile, Bottas has also admitted that the pit stop problems, which hurt Sauber's prospects in the emerging races, had an impact on the team's development.

The Swiss team is once again lagging behind the competition in providing updates, with both cars bringing up the rear at the Dutch Grand Prix.

“Every season we had our own problems,” he continued. “This year, at the start of the year, a lot of the pit stop issues actually took quite a bit of resources and time to fix, rather than just focusing on improving the car. So yeah, in terms of the people we have, it hasn't been that stable.

“Recently people have been coming in and people leaving, so it's more like everything is being designed for the future. I think that cost us some resources.”

Sauber's non-competitive stance came at the wrong time on the driver's side, as Bottas and Guanyu Zhou were not given the platform to stake their claim.

Although Bottas had a convincing lead over his teammate Zhou in the head-to-head duel, he did not have the equipment to achieve the results his games deserved.

“Yes, it is not an easy situation as a driver because you have difficulty proving what you can do,” he admitted.

“If people just look at the results, it's pretty easy to make a judgment.

“But the most important thing is that I know how I perform, the team knows how I perform and in the end that’s what matters.

“The people who understand driver performance will still see what you can do, what you can achieve when you have the machines.”

The earlier management change that Bottas alluded to was Audi's decision to oust CEO Andreas Seidl and put former Ferrari boss Mattia Binotto at the helm of Sauber.

After the announcement, Bottas revealed that he had had “fairly little communication” with the old regime compared to the open dialogue he had with Binotto.

The ten-time F1 race winner is sure the Swiss-Italian, having watched what he can do in winning cars with Mercedes, will improve his prospects for 2025.

When asked why the relationship with Seidl and the former general representative Oliver Hoffmann lacked the respect he had desired, Bottas replied: “That is a difficult question.

“I think if people have a short memory, let's say under the previous management, they've only seen me in a car that doesn't perform and nothing around before that.

“But I think the difference with Mattia is that he was in a battle against us when I was at Mercedes and he was able to monitor what I can do and I was able to take some points away from them, so he knows that. “ As I said yesterday, I think we started the conversations in the right way with great respect and that's what I really appreciate.

“So we will continue the discussions, but for me it is clear what I want and what I want is to stay in Formula 1 until Audi joins.”

Sauber has the last remaining spot on next season's grid, but that wouldn't have been the case if Audi had managed to lure Carlos Sainz into the team.

Sainz's desire to take several months to consider his available options resulted in the driver market coming to a standstill as several teams awaited the Ferrari driver's response.

The Spaniard, who has won three F1 races, would hedge his bets on Williams, a team with which Bottas was negotiating a possible reunion.

Asked whether it was frustrating that a driver who had achieved less in the sport took precedence over him, Bottas replied: “I think that's how the sport is.”

“People have really short memories in this sport, but like I said, luckily there are still people who know. So that’s what I depend on,” he concluded.