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Mercedes reserve driver Valtteri Bottas and F1 Academy driver Dariane Pin participated in a mini ice hockey game organised by the German F1 team. Bottas, who hails from Finland, a country that excels in Ice Hockey, surprisingly ended up losing to Pin in the only match they played.
In a recently published video by the Mercedes F1 team on X, Bottas and Pin faced off against each other. The match lasted for half a minute, where Pin beat Bottas by 2 goals to 1. It was Pin who scored the first goal, and Bottas brought in the equalizer.
But in the end, the F1 academy driver proved to be too good for the Finn, as Doriane Pin finally beat Valtteri Bottas. Here's the caption of the video that Mercedes posted on social media, where Bottas and Pin shared their talent in mini ice hockey:
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"Doriane vs. Valtteri in a mini ice hockey showdown you didn't know you needed."
Here's the video on the micro-blogging site:
Valtteri Bottas reunited with Mercedes this season after his stint with Kick Sauber ended last year. Bottas, the former driver, joined the Silver Arrows as a reserve and third driver behind George Russell and Kimi Antonelli.
The former Silver Arrows driver, who drove alongside Lewis Hamilton from 2017 to 2021, helped the Silver Arrows claim five Constructors' Championships. He also helped Hamilton to clinch four of his seven drivers' titles from 2017 to 2020.
At the end of the 2021 season, the Brackley-based team decided to bring in Russell and replace Bottas, who moved to Alfa Romeo (currently Kick Sauber). Pin, on the other hand, is Mercedes' F1 Academy driver and is a member of the Mercedes Junior Team.
George Russell wants to go the Valtteri Bottas way if the Mercedes contract extension is not met.
George Russell shared an interesting response to his contract renewal query. When asked about the same, the Silver Arrows star stated that he might go the Valtteri Bottas way to generate income if he does not race in F1 next year. Here's what he said:
"I'm considering the calendar. If I don't have a contract next year, I need to bring the calendar out to bring the income in." (Via The Race)
Russell's comment has come after Bottas pulled off a stunt where he raised $150,000 by sharing a calendar with his bare backside back in 2023.
George Russell's contract with the Silver Arrows ends at the end of this year, and given the paddock chatters, Toto Wolff's team is expected to give him a contract extension. After Hamilton's departure, the British driver remained in the team as the unannounced leader on the team.
Currently, George Russell is in P4 in the Drivers' Championship with 136 points after 10 races and two Sprints. Compared to him, his teammate, Kimi Antonelli, is in P7 with 63 points. The Silver Arrows are in P2 in the Constructors' Championship with 199 points.
