Sauber star Valtteri Bottas in talks with 2 teams as Audi prioritises F1 rival

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Sauber star Valtteri Bottas is now in active talks with two rival Formula 1 teams about a switch for 2025 as Audi is prioritising a different driver to join with Nico Hulkenberg.

The four rings of Ingolstadt has already made a splash in the driver market as it starts to get settled in Hinwil, Switzerland. Audi will take Sauber over as a full factory entry in 2026 but it had a say in the F1 team’s 2025 driver line-up and handed Hulkenberg a three-year contract.

Hulkenberg was out of contract at Haas at the end of 2024, like Bottas and Zhou Guanyu are with Sauber. Now, his arrival has raised the potential for Audi to completely change the line-up in Hinwil. But Bottas has options elsewhere in Formula 1 if his days with Sauber are done.

Audi is prioritising signing Carlos Sainz over keeping Valtteri Bottas at Sauber

That is according to Lawrence Barretto, who reports that Bottas is in talks with Sauber about a new contract. His priority is to stay in Switzerland and help guide the team’s transition into becoming Audi’s entry. He has long made it clear that Bottas wants to drive for Audi in 2026.

But while Bottas wants to stay, Audi is prioritising signing Ferrari exile Carlos Sainz to race for Sauber in 2025. The German automotive giants snapping Hulkenberg up has also bought the brand more time to see if Sainz is willing to join a project as the team’s lead driver next year.

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Should Sainz agree to join Sauber next season, Bottas has options elsewhere in case his goal of driving for Audi falls short. The 34-year-old is in talks with at least two rival teams about a move. One of the teams Bottas is speaking with is Williams, with whom he got his F1 debut.

Valtteri Bottas is in talks with Williams about a move to the F1 team in 2025

Williams may have an opening beside Alex Albon for Bottas to fill in 2025 as Logan Sargeant is out of contract after 2024. The Grove squad only gave Sargeant a single-year contract last December to stay for a second season after the 23-year-old’s rookie campaign last term.

Bottas would offer Williams an experienced driver they know well from his days there from 2013 and 2016. The Finn made his Formula 1 debut with them at the Australian GP in 2013 and entered 78 races with them, before replacing Nico Rosberg at Mercedes through 2021.

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Mercedes only ever gave Bottas single-year contracts during his time as teammate to Lewis Hamilton. So, Sauber offering him a three-year deal to join whilst they ran as Alfa Romeo in 2022 convinced Bottas to switch before the Silver Arrows replaced him with George Russell.

Now, Bottas’ career in Formula 1 could come full circle by returning to Williams as a 10-time Grand Prix winner. He has also secured 20 pole positions and stood on 67 podiums, of which the Finn achieved nine with Williams from the 2014 Austrian GP to the Canadian GP in 2016.