Valtteri Bottas replaced retired Formula One world champion Nico Rosberg at Mercedes on Monday.
Valtteri Bottas replaced retired Formula One world champion Nico Rosberg at Mercedes on Monday.
Appearing at the factory with team boss Toto Wolff, Bottas promised to push new team mate and triple world champion Lewis Hamilton as hard as possible.
"I'm sure we are going to be close and both pushing each other forward," said the 27-year-old, who has yet to win a grand prix in four years at Williams but has appeared on the podium nine times.
Here' a factbox on Finnish driver.
Born: Nastola, Finland on Aug. 28, 1989 (27 years old).
* Bottas started racing go-karts at six years old and moved into single-seater car racing in 2007, when he finished third overall in the Formula Renault 2.0 series with three wins.
* The Finn was Formula Renault champion in 2008, with 12 wins, and competed in the Formula Three Euroseries in 2009 and 2010, finishing third overall in both seasons and becoming the first double winner of the Zandvoort Masters. In 2011 he won the GP3 championship.
* Joined Williams as a test driver in 2010 and appointed reserve driver in 2012, making his Formula One race debut for the team in 2013 alongside team mate Pastor Maldonado of Venezuela.
* Bottas made his first F1 podium appearance in Austria in 2014. He has nine career top-three finishes but has yet to win a grand prix in 77 starts. He is also yet to be beaten by a team mate in the overall standings.
* In 2014 he finished fourth overall in the championship. Last season he was eighth.
* Married long-time girlfriend Emilia Pikkarainen, a Finnish Olympic swimmer who has competed in three Games, in September, 2016.
* Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff has been part of Bottas's management team along with twice champion Mika Hakkinen and the Finn's former manager Didier Coton.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "Mercedes, Formula One, Valtteri Bottas, Lewis Hamilton, Toto Wolff, Nico Rosberg, Williams,")
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}