Bottas: 2022 probably my most enjoyable F1 season so far.
Valtteri Bottas believes 2022 is "probably the most enjoyable" season he has experienced to date in Formula 1 thanks to stability over his future with Alfa Romeo.
Aug 11, 2022, 9:57 AM
By: Luke Smith
Motorsport.com

Bottas joined Alfa Romeo at the beginning of the season following a five-year stint with Mercedes that saw him score 10 grand prix victories and twice finish as runner-up in the drivers' championship to teammate Lewis Hamilton. While the Finn has taken a step back from the regular front-running form he enjoyed at Mercedes, he has spearheaded Alfa Romeo's efforts in the midfield this season, scoring 41 of its 46 points so far.

Bottas signed a multi-year agreement with Alfa Romeo for this year, providing certainty over his future that he never previously enjoyed with either Williams or Mercedes, who opted for yearly contract renewals. "This is actually the first time for me, because even with Williams, it was always one year," Bottas told Motorsport.com in an interview.

"This season is probably the most enjoyable so far," Bottas said. "OK, maybe you don't know always remember things, but it really feels like I'm enjoying F1 more than ever. When it gets to the racing, it's a lot of good fun, especially like in the midfield and how different it is strategy-wise in the races. It's more like one decision can jump you many places. It's a different game.

‘Spearheading Alfa Romeo's Efforts’;

https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/b...-far/10351584/


Bottas ready to plow through the field
12:07 Wed, 10 Aug 2022.
F1i.com

As a fan of big wheels, Valtteri Bottas couldn't resist saddling a tractor while enjoying his summer break in the beautiful American state of Wyoming.
And while most farm equipment is usually green, the Finn naturally opted for a red tractor whose color had a vague common trait with his Alfa Romeo F1 car.
While the machine was short on power and downforce compared to his C42, it did prove more reliable out in the field! Keep those big wheels spinning Val!

‘Tractor Plough’;

https://f1i.com/images/450813-bottas...the-field.html


ALFA ROMEO AND SAUBER PARTNERSHIP TO CONTINUE
Sauber Group and Alfa Romeo agree terms of new deal
30th July 2022, 18:38
James Phillips

Sauber Group and Alfa Romeo have agreed to continue their partnership. Alfa Romeo has been the title sponsor of the Swiss team since 2019. The agreement also sees the Italian manufacturer provide technical expertise.

Autosport is reporting that Sauber Group and Alfa Romeo have agreed a one-year extension to their existing deal. The agreement has seen the Italian car manufacturer return to the F1 grid, in a reduced capacity. Alfa Romeo has previously been a manufacturer team on the grid. Their last race was in 1985 before withdrawing.

When Alfa agreed to return in 2019, it struck a unique deal with Sauber. It supplies technical assistance and title sponsorship, but race under Ferrari engines. Confirming the extension, Alfa Romeo CEO Jean-Philippe Imparato revealed the deal is for one year only. “I have signed the renewal for 2023 this morning.

‘ALFA ROMEO RENEWAL’;

https://www.formulanerds.com/news/f1.../?nowprocket=1


Alfa Romeo’s ‘bet’ on Sauber and a unique F1 deal has paid off
Jul 29 2022
By Scott Mitchell

Sauber’s renewal of its Alfa Romeo title partnership deal – which Reuters reports has now been confirmed for 2023 – extends a unique Formula 1 arrangement for another season. Alfa Romeo is a ‘works’ F1 team in the loosest possible sense. It is an extreme interpretation of an advertising campaign – title sponsorship with the perks of that sponsor being a famous car brand rather than some cryptocurrency or NFT nonsense.

The purpose of the way this deal is structured is to keep the options open for both parties. While the Alfa Romeo money and prestige are obviously of importance to Sauber, it is not as though it shapes its entire infrastructure. And while being in F1 is of great interest to Alfa Romeo, that’s only the case while this cut-price approach remains valid.

The arrangement currently works well for both parties. Alfa Romeo CEO Jean-Philippe Imparato – whose reported remarks today come ahead of any planned official announcement – is particularly pleased with what he describes simply as a “fantastic return on investment” for his company. “It was very simple, the guide we had together with Fred [Vasseur] is I want to be ‘up’,” Imparato told The Race about the requirements from Alfa Romeo’s side for 2022. Progress. P8, P7, P6, P5, I don’t care. Up. And with the right level of return on investment in terms of exposure of Alfa Romeo, compared with the investment we make.”

‘Up’;

https://the-race.com/formula-1/alfa-...-has-paid-off/


Two-horse race to be Bottas' 2023 teammate.
12/08/2022, 08:29
By GMM F1

The identity of Valtteri Bottas' teammate at Alfa Romeo in 2023 appears to be down to a two-horse race. Frederic Vasseur is personally championing the Sauber team's own junior Theo Pourchaire, the 18-year-old fellow Frenchman who is a title contender in Formula 2 this year.

Vasseur says Pourchaire will be making a Friday practice or tyre testing appearance in 2022. "We'll find the solution, don't worry," he said recently.

At the same time, Alfa Romeo is not yet ready to confirm that Guanyu Zhou will be keeping his seat next year - even though the team says it is impressed with the Chinese rookie. "I haven't spoken to any team yet," Zhou is quoted by the Dutch publication Formule 1. "I feel like I have already proven myself as a fast driver, now I have to show that I can perform consistently."

‘Two-Horse Race’;

https://www.sportsmole.co.uk/formula...7.html?newsnow


The painful deja vu undermining F1 2022’s early feel-good story
11th August 2022, 11:14
By Scott Mitchell

Before Formula 1 signed off for its summer break, Valtteri Bottas hoped the Hungarian Grand Prix would send a message to his Alfa Romeo team. It did. Just not the one Bottas intended. A long-awaited floor and diffuser upgrade in Hungary marked Alfa Romeo’s first major development for several races. Bottas felt it was no coincidence that he promptly secured his first top-10 qualifying result since May’s Spanish Grand Prix – ironically the previous race at which the car had a significant upgrade.

“It would be a good example for the whole team that once we bring new bits to this car, that is the key to keeping us fighting for the top 10 and in the points,” he said. Instead, though, the Hungarian GP sent another message to Alfa Romeo – and it was a very familiar one. Just when Bottas thought the team was about to correct one key 2022 limitation (a lack of development), an equally large limitation (reliability) bit him hard.

The deja vu was palpable: a third retirement of the season for Bottas and seventh for Alfa Romeo across its two cars. Throw into that an astonishing number of car problems in Friday practice sessions for Bottas and there’s a pretty concrete case for the Alfa Romeo C42 being F1 2022’s most unreliable car. “Where we probably have suffered most is in general is reliability, where we had a few setbacks,” says technical director Jan Monchaux.

‘Déjà vu’;

https://the-race.com/formula-1/the-p...el-good-story/


How Zhou is silencing doubters: 'People have said racist stuff, I do my talking on track'
AUGUST 10TH 2022, 13:09
AUTHOR Chris Medland

Zhou's rookie season will be remembered for his crash at Silverstone and label as a pay driver, but that's unfair on an impressive young driver, says Chris Medland I defy anyone to hear the name Zhou Guanyu and not immediately recall an Alfa Romeo upside down hurtling towards the barrier at Silverstone, being somersaulted into the fence and landing on its side behind the tyres.

“Everything happened so quickly but it wasn’t a nice feeling,” Zhou recalls. “When I first went upside down it wasn’t a big deal for me because I felt like maybe I would stop in the gravel – Silverstone has gravel after the tarmac – and then when I was in the gravel I was still going at a constant speed and I was like ‘OK, I’m in big s*** now’.

The thing is, for Zhou, it’s not the crash that has been the hardest thing to shake. It was a tag that he was only in the sport due to his nationality, with the Chinese driver having finished third in his third full season of Formula 2 last year. “When I signed the contract I had a lot of people comment or say stuff about me, and some of them never followed Formula 2 or followed my career,” he recalls. “They just judged by where I’m coming from, so this sort of thing is not nice to have.”

‘I do my talking on track’;

https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/a...lking-on-track