Bottas is ready for his final race after 'toughest of rides'

The Finn will drive his snail-paced Sauber for the last time in Abu Dhabi. After 12 years in F1, he is without a full-time seat next season. But, as he tells Kieran Jackson, he has no regrets

- Kieran Jackson

Not for the first time, Valtteri Bottas is playing it cool. Frankly, when has Valtteri Bottas not played it cool? A new and improved figure of exuberance away from the racetrack – more on that later – the 35-year-old racer is on the verge of his final furlong this weekend. And while he is not bowing out strictly on his own terms, he has the aura of a person departing the sport he cherishes – the only pastime he’s ever known – without any sense of bitterness or resentment.

In the “piranha club” whirlpool of the Formula One paddock, that in itself is admirable. Yet he opts not to delve too deeply into the psychoanalysis of himself. Instead, his new life outlook is refreshingly simple.

“I’ve just been able to take the piss out of myself,” he tells The Independent, in the Stake F1 Team (Sauber) hospitality unit.

As Lewis Hamilton’s 12-year stint at Mercedes concludes this weekend spare a thought for Bottas – Hamilton’s favourite ever teammate – at the other end of the pit lane. A teammate who aided Hamilton’s glory years with examples of self-sacrifice rarely seen in F1. A teammate who, with five constructors’ titles to his name, has his own pride of place in Toto Wolff’s hybridera juggernaut.

So much so, in fact, that Bottas is set to be welcomed back with open arms as a Mercedes reserve driver next year. He’ll still be a presence in the paddock.

But come the end of 58 laps at the Yas Marina Circuit on Sunday, Bottas will wave goodbye – at least for the time being – to a regular spot on the most-prized grid in world motorsport after a dozen trips around the sun. Dropped by Sauber for 2025, Bottas will start potentially his final grand prix in Abu Dhabi on Sunday.