Whos getting BOTTAS' seat next year ?

GR63 · 30 Jul 2021 at 11:13

SKILL said:
Conversely Merc need to think about 2-3 years down the line, who 'takes over' when Hamilton retires, Bottas isn't that driver. Having Russell in the team for 2 years, gives both the best indication of whether he could (compared against 'the best') and also gets him settled in, and I really don't think Merc mind who wins as long as one of their drivers does, and they've made it clear they will use team orders when it makes sense.

I'm never sure I believe that, nobody remembers who won the WCC in any given year, but they remember the driver *and the team they drove with*...

Merc's earnings come from winning WCC not WDC... Follow the money

Greboth · 30 Jul 2021 at 11:17

I think Russell will be getting it. The 2 measures to consider is Bottas against Hamilton which even as Bottas version 9.2 (or whatever number he's up to) still isn't good enough to stay close. The other is Bottas v Perez which, while Bottas has a couple points on Perez, that's hardly a convincing lead.

So to me it makes sense to get Russell in especially is he is the future of Merc F1 you want him to have a year or 2 at least of learning from Hamilton.

turbot1984 · 30 Jul 2021 at 11:20

Probably not Tsunoda?

SKILL · 30 Jul 2021 at 11:31

JudgeDeath said:
Merc's earnings come from winning WCC not WDC... Follow the money

It's hard/impossibly to quantify but I wonder how the difference between first and second in WCC compares vs the difference in marketing/sponsorship of winning the WDC?

Of course both is usually the case anyway.

GR63 · 30 Jul 2021 at 11:38

SKILL said:
It's hard/impossibly to quantify but I wonder how the difference between first and second in WCC compares vs the difference in marketing/sponsorship of winning the WDC?

Of course both is usually the case anyway.

Diff in constructors payout for 1st-2nd-3rd is appx $10m per step..... But interesting to compare the two values if we could

Plus lets not forget George will be cheaper to employ than Valtteri most likely....

ShiWarrior · 30 Jul 2021 at 12:48

turbot1984 said:
Probably not Tsunoda?

Not next year no

GR63 · 30 Jul 2021 at 12:50

ShiWarrior said:
Not next year no

especially if he keeps crashing (Fp1 today)

KiNgPiN83 · 31 Jul 2021 at 15:04

I think Russell makes more sense despite any friction it could create as you ideally want your drivers finishing 1-2 and not 1-8 etc. You may aswell get the two fastest you can and then deal with any clashes/issues as they arise.

muon · 31 Jul 2021 at 16:12

I wonder if Mercedes might actually quit F1 if they don't manage to get or produce a star driver. Say in a few years time one Hamilton has left.

Also is it in RBR's interest to get Max to burn all bridges with Mercedes.

Terminal_Boy · 31 Jul 2021 at 16:17

Russell is the best option. He can be Hamilton’s wingman for a season or two until Hamilton gets bored having broken all the F1 records.

I doubt that Williams can afford Bottas whether they want him or not.

ShiWarrior · 31 Jul 2021 at 16:28

bottas may not have a choice if he wants to stay in F1

Kautya · 31 Jul 2021 at 17:27

Terminal_Boy said:
Russell is the best option. He can be Hamilton’s wingman for a season or two until Hamilton gets bored having broken all the F1 records.

I doubt that Williams can afford Bottas whether they want him or not.

Not sure George will be content being a wingman. Theres clearly no love lost between the two. LH has praised Norris but never Russell. Even when he (Russell) drove an excellent race when he drove for Merc, didnt remember seeing any praise from LH. But would personally love to see Russell in a decent car, he has definitely outdriven the Williams car far too many times.

adam cool dude · 31 Jul 2021 at 18:06

I would love to see Russell just so Lewis can school him. Totally overated driver.

Ninco! · 31 Jul 2021 at 19:51

Kautya said:
Not sure George will be content being a wingman. Theres clearly no love lost between the two. LH has praised Norris but never Russell. Even when he (Russell) drove an excellent race when he drove for Merc, didnt remember seeing any praise from LH. But would personally love to see Russell in a decent car, he has definitely outdriven the Williams car far too many times.

It does seem true, never heard Hamilton praise Russell, seems rather dismissive, whether they have clashed behind the scenes at testing or something?

I wouldn't write off Bottas as they are racing as a team, and I think this year, MB will be hell-bent to beat RB. If Bottas plays a part to beat Perez and be a nuisance to Verstappen; I can see Bottas staying.

Lakeland · 1 Aug 2021 at 08:27

I wonder if it could be Russell be off to McLaren? Ricciardo has a long contract but there could be a performance clause with him performing so badly, it’s a bit of a random one but it could happen..

MooMoo444 · 2 Aug 2021 at 08:46

Bottas secured his seat taking out both RBs- all sorted.

ShiWarrior · 2 Aug 2021 at 08:54

Goksly · 2 Aug 2021 at 09:27

Russell to Merc. Bottas to Alfa in place of Kimi.

GR63 · 2 Aug 2021 at 11:21

Only as good as your last race... Oh dear Valtteri !

Greboth · 2 Aug 2021 at 11:46

Lakeland said:
I wonder if it could be Russell be off to McLaren? Ricciardo has a long contract but there could be a performance clause with him performing so badly, it’s a bit of a random one but it could happen..

There's no doubt that Norris is outperforming Ricciardo which I do find a little surprising. Though it does seem to be more about the car than Ricciardo's skill as, paraphrasing Norris, he said around the start of the season there's problems with the car that he has to adapt around but he's more used to it. With the design philosophy locked in I doubt there's much McLaren can do so I think they'll keep Ricciardo at least until next year when they tailer the car more to his preferences.

JudgeDeath said:
Only as good as your last race... Oh dear Valtteri !

And in a race where Russell score his first points for Williams and demonstrates he's a team player by telling them to prioritise Latifi.