Beyond the Flag
Fansided

Formula 1: 5 drivers who could be the next champion not named Lewis Hamilton

By Asher Fair

MEXICO CITY, MEXICO - OCTOBER 28: Fourth place finisher Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes GP celebrates winning the 2018 F1 World Drivers Championship by performing donuts during the Formula One Grand Prix of Mexico at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez on October 28, 2018 in Mexico City, Mexico. (Photo by Dan Istitene/Getty Images)
MEXICO CITY, MEXICO - OCTOBER 28: Fourth place finisher Lewis Hamilton of Great Britain and Mercedes GP celebrates winning the 2018 F1 World Drivers Championship by performing donuts during the Formula One Grand Prix of Mexico at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez on October 28, 2018 in Mexico City, Mexico. (Photo by Dan Istitene/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
5 of 6
Next
SUZUKA, JAPAN – OCTOBER 05: Valtteri Bottas driving the (77) Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team Mercedes WO9 (Photo by Charles Coates/Getty Images)
SUZUKA, JAPAN – OCTOBER 05: Valtteri Bottas driving the (77) Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team Mercedes WO9 (Photo by Charles Coates/Getty Images) /

Valtteri Bottas

Since arriving at Mercedes ahead of the 2017 Formula 1 season, Valtteri Bottas has effectively been the team’s number two driver behind Lewis Hamilton. However, that was almost not the case this season.

Even after Bottas’s disastrous qualifying crash for the season opener, the Australian Grand Prix, and subsequent disappointing eighth place finish in the race, he was in a position to shoot to the top of the driver standings following the season’s fourth race, the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

However, Bottas ran over a piece of debris with less than three laps remaining in this race while leading it, which caused one of his tires to go flat and prevented him from even finishing the race.

Hamilton ended up taking the lead, winning the race and shooting to the top of the driver standings as a result of it. Ever since, he has been Mercedes’ top driver on a regular basis, not including the infamous Russian Grand Prix.

Over the summer, the 29-year-old Finn signed a one-year contract to continue driving for Mercedes through at least the 2019 season, and this contract has an additional one-year option that the team can use to retain him through the 2020 season if he continues to perform at a high level and/or serve as a wingman to Hamilton.

Keep in mind the fact that Bottas is 29 years old and Hamilton is 33. If Bottas continues to do what Mercedes want him to do and he continues to develop into a driver who is capable of winning races on a regular basis, it is very possible that he will continue driving for the team even after Hamilton moves on, at which point he could become the man to beat in Formula 1.

Home/Formula One