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Alfa Romeo driver Valtteri Bottas revealed the advice he received from outgoing F1 world champion Kimi Raikkonen about his new team. The former Alfa Romeo driver advised his replacement that the Swiss outfit was a great team to work with.
Speaking to Italian publication Gazette Dello Sport, Bottas said:
“I heard from Kimi Raikkonen at the end of last year. He explained something to me about the work within this team, and he spoke highly of Alfa Romeo, of its potential, telling me that I would have fun. But as you know Kimi is not a man of many words.”
As one Finn replaced the other in Alfa Romeo, outgoing champion Raikkonen, who has been associated with the Swiss outfit since his F1 debut, advised Bottas about working with them. Bottas revealed that despite Raikkonen being a person of few words, the senior Finn had only positive feedback about the Hinwil-based team.
Valtteri Bottas looks forward to working with his new iconic F1 team
The Finn, who formerly drove for Williams and Mercedes, has a challenging task ahead of leading the Alfa Romeo team. In the outfit, he will have Chinese rookie Guanyu Zhou as his team-mate. Despite his run in the preseason test being compromised by Zhou’s stoppages, Bottas is positive about the season ahead and looks forward to working with his new team.
Proud of being associated with the iconic Italian brand, Bottas said:
“Driving for this iconic Italian brand is an honour, I feel the responsibility to bring the brand back to the top, but I don’t consider it a pressure, indeed I think it is a great motivation. Compared to the past, for me it is a step forward. I am proud to wear these colours: there will be hard work to do and we will have the opportunity to have fun.”
Alfa Romeo might be a step down from his former team Mercedes, or even the Williams F1 team with which he made his debut. The new regulations, however, could open a window of opportunity for the Finn if the team are able to develop their car properly. At Mercedes, his role was compromised by often having to play wingman to Lewis Hamilton, with his sole opportunity to fight for the championship being amidst a pandemic season in 2020.
