How Valtteri Bottas feels about retaining 2025 Sauber seat as key Mattia Binotto ‘problem’ emerges

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The United States Grand Prix is on the horizon after an extended autumn break in the Formula 1 calendar and Sauber have to be aiming to get off the mark in the Constructors’ Championship.

Sauber have six race weekends left to avoid the ignominy of going a whole campaign without scoring a point.

Pit stop issues prevented Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu from securing any top-ten finishes at the beginning of the season when arguably their car was at its most competitive.

However, other teams have taken decent steps forward this year while Sauber have stood still, leaving them in a position where advancing out of F1 and avoiding being the final two finishers in a race are an achievement.

There are so few race seats on the F1 grid though that even when an opportunity at a team with little prospect of success becomes available, few drivers will turn it down.

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber from team principal to Audi future

Speaking on the Autosport Podcast, journalists Ben Hunt and Alex Kalinauckas were discussing the second vacant seat in the team which will soon be taken over by Audi.

Bottas is seen as the favourite to stay at Sauber, but little progress has been made in recent weeks.

Mattia Binotto taking over the Audi F1 project was seen as a positive for his chances of staying on the grid, but the longer the wait goes on, the more likely it is that an alternative is being considered.

Why Valtteri Bottas retaining his Sauber F1 seat might now be a ‘problem’

Asked whether Bottas will be getting frustrated with the lack of progress over a potential Sauber deal, Hunt said: “I mean, Valtteri is very much his own man.

“He’s totally chilled with what happens. I think he obviously wants to stay informed in Formula 1. But if they were to phone him up and say sorry, mate, we don’t want you anymore. He would take it on the chin and go do something else.

“I think that that’s the kind of guy he is. He’s not seeking any arm around the shoulder or anything like that.

“He’s just waiting for the announcement and then he can decide what he does. He just wants to know for his own future, what am I doing next year? What does my schedule look like?”

READ MORE: Sauber driver Valtteri Bottas’ life outside F1 from girlfriend to wine and gin

Kalinauckas continued and explained the issue Bottas might now face: “We just know what the options are, go for Bottas or go for one of the rookies.

“Colapinto is doing an excellent job for Williams. Bortoleto, who’s impressed very well in Formula 2, those are Sauber’s options.

“I don’t see this Mick Schumacher thing as anything particularly concrete yet.

“The problem Bottas has got and his camp have got is, it’s not happened yet.

“If Sauber and Audi and Binotto were totally sold on it, Binotto’s been there what two months now and has not yet committed to him. So that to me speaks loudest of all.”

Mick Schumacher still in Sauber conversation alongside Valtteri Bottas

Bottas has had a tough time since leaving Mercedes, having to deal with racing for a midfield team lacking investment that has unsurprisingly seen them fall to the bottom of the standings.

Mick Schumacher has been named as an alternative by Binotto and if he’s going to make a return to F1, it’s reaching now-or-never territory.

Colapinto and Bortoleto’s chances of earning the seat are also in doubt, which may give the German an even better chance of entering a third season in Formula 1.

Sauber and Bottas are having trouble agreeing on contract terms although the Finn remains the strongest option for the team going forward.