What does the future hold for Bottas and Zhou as Kick Sauber sign Bortoleto?

Kick Sauber have chosen youth over experience for their second seat in 2025 – and that means incumbents Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu are on the hunt for new opportunities. So, what does the future hold for each of them?

Bottas eyeing reserve role at Mercedes

It’s been a heck of a year for Bottas.

The Finn, 35, fell out of favour with senior management at Sauber/Audi, then became the frontrunner to retain his seat when the management changed and then lost out to rising star and F2 championship leader Gabriel Bortoleto at the death.

READ MORE: Kick Sauber confirm rookie Bortoleto as second driver for 2025

That came after he missed out on a seat at Williams to Carlos Sainz and was overlooked for a vacancy at Alpine.

But despite those setbacks, sources say Bottas is not downbeat. He is seemingly as motivated as he’s ever been. He’s training harder than ever and is super committed to having a strong final chapter in his Formula 1 career.

When we spoke earlier this year, he reckoned he could see himself racing in Formula 1 for at least five more years. Unfortunately, a combination of factors have prevented him from doing so.

This year he’s had a car that is slowest of all and rarely been capable of fighting for points on pure performance at any stage this year. As a result, he’s fallen out of the shop window and people have questioned his quality at this stage of his career.

ANALYSIS: Why Sauber chose to go with Bortoleto and youth rather than Bottas and experience

While Bottas has driven very well with what he had this year and outperformed team mate Zhou, he hasn’t done the latter convincingly in recent races and that’s counted against him. However, it's always hard to prove you have what it takes when the car isn’t up to scratch. Last time out in Brazil, Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso showed how hard it is to deliver when the car is misbehaving.

Bottas’ requirement for a new deal came at a time when there’s a big influx of young drivers, triggered by Ollie Bearman’s remarkable super sub performance in Saudi Arabia. Rookies will make up at least 20% of the grid next year – and ultimately there's not enough room for Bottas to squeeze in despite his experience.

Audi ideally wanted a headline driver to herald their arrival in 2026 and after missing out on Sainz, capturing the reigning F3 champion and current F2 championship leader Gabriel Bortoleto on a long-term deal was a very good option.

Bottas and his management team knew Bortoleto offered a significant threat, so they began working on a back-up plan in the form of a reserve role at Mercedes in parallel. It is believed the two parties have been in talks for several weeks.

Bottas has a great relationship with Mercedes and boss Toto Wolff after spending five years with the outfit. During this time, he secured all 10 of his Grand Prix wins and 58 of his 67 podiums.

Someone with his immense experience and drive would be useful to the eight-time world champions, who are going through a difficult patch to sit fourth in the pecking order behind McLaren, Ferrari and Red Bull.

READ MORE: Who is Gabriel Bortoleto? Everything you need to know about Kick Sauber’s new recruit

Aside from being a strong option if Mercedes needed a substitute, his feedback and efforts in the simulator would be invaluable.

For Bottas, such a role will keep him visible in the paddock and in the conversation as he targets a return to a race seat in 2026. He can stay sharp in the simulator and there could potentially be opportunities for him to drive F1 machinery.

Now that Sauber have made their move, sources say talks between Mercedes and Bottas are set to accelerate in the coming days and weeks.

Zhou assessing his options

Chinese racer Zhou brought a legion of new fans to Formula 1 when he made his debut in 2022 – and together with Bottas played a key role in Sauber-run Alfa Romeo securing P6 in the constructors’ championship in 2022.

The last two seasons have been difficult and he’s struggled to match his team mate consistently – though it should be noted mechanical issues on his side of the garage hampered his progress.

READ MORE: Bottas and Zhou to leave Kick Sauber as team confirm decision to part ways

It remains unclear what his future holds, but sources say his preference is to find a racing programme rather than act as a reserve for a Formula 1 team.

I understand he has options in other racing series including Formula E and now that Sauber have made their decision, the 25-year-old and his team can assess those opportunities properly.

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