Formula 1 News: Bottas admits July his 2026 comeback 'deadline'

(GMM) July will be a critical month for Mercedes Reserve driver Valtteri Bottas (pictured), the Finnish driver has admitted.

The 35-year-old lost his Sauber race seat at the end of last year, and returned to Mercedes – where he won 10 grands prix as Lewis Hamilton’s teammate.

However, Bottas is just the reserve driver this year, insisting upon being present at each and every grand prix in the hope of returning to the grid in 2026.

He insists his motivation is fully intact.

“Because it’s at the top of my mind, the motivation naturally stays high,” he told Ilta Sanomat from the scene of the Austrian GP.

“I want to come back and I’ll work as hard as I can to get there. It’s a simple way to maintain motivation.”

Bottas, to turn 36 in August, caused a stir last week with a social media post in which he was depicted stroking the ‘nice, free seat’ of a Cadillac road car.

F1’s 2026 regulations are also perfect timing, he insists.

“There will be new cars, new engines, and the tires are a little smaller,” Bottas said. “There are quite a lot of variables, so it’s hard to predict who will make it and who won’t.

“But I think it’s a pretty good situation for a new team to come in,” he added.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff said just days ago that if Bottas does not secure his return to the grid for 2026, he can imagine the Finn in IndyCar or Le Mans.

Bottas admits that July will be a critical month for him.

“That’s a fact,” he said, referring to F1’s August break period after that. “That’s when the deadline comes.

“These things should be finished here during July. July starts next week, so it will be an interesting month ahead.”

He has been strongly linked with F1’s new eleventh team, Cadillac, but Bottas admits nothing is signed. “In this sport, a contract is always far away until the signatures are on the paper,” said Bottas.

“You can’t even say you’re close or far away because you don’t know what will happen. But my position should theoretically be strong due to my experience, because there are definitely teams that need it.”

Bottas is also staying sharp both on the track and in the gym – including hundreds of kilometers per week with his latest passion, road cycling.

“After the Silverstone weekend, I have been booked for two days of testing in a row with Mercedes at Jerez,” Bottas revealed. “A two-day test like that at this point is quite good and it’s refreshing to be able to drive properly.”

As for the famous thick necks of F1 drivers, Bottas insists his is also still intact.

“After 12 years of F1, those muscles don’t just wither away in an instant,” he smiled.