Beloved Mercedes Formula 1 reserve driver Valtteri Bottas, former teammate of Lewis Hamilton between 2017-2021, may be making his comeback on the grind. New championship team, Cadillac, is set to enter the world of F1 from next year. The iconic American vehicle manufacturer has not yet announced who their drivers will be for the upcoming season; however, past season favorites such as Sergio Perez and Daniel Riccardo have been rumored to be in the mix, with Bottas as the top contender.
Bottas continues to be favored for F1 return
During the 2017-2021 Mercedes domination of the F1 grid, the Finnish driver made history with British seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton as they brought Mercedes victory on the grid together for five consecutive years. After leaving Mercedes at the end of the 2021 season, Bottas returned to the grid under Alfa Romeo for both the 2022 and 2023 seasons, before racing under Sauber for 2024. He is currently the reserve driver for Mercedes for the 2025 season.
Bottas currently holds the record for the most career points ever achieved without holding a World Drivers’ Championship title. Since beginning his F1 career in 2013, he has achieved 10 race wins, 20 pole positions, 19 fastest laps, and 67 podiums. Bottas has remained open about his desire to return to F1 as a full-time driver, and the new Cadillac team may be the answer he has been looking for.
Cadillac has yet to announce its 2026 drivers
General Motors (GM) will make their F1 debut for the 2026 season under the Cadillac brand. The new championship team will be the fist new addition to the gris since 2016 when the Haas team entered the F1 world. The addition of a new team on the grid means that two more drivers seats will be up for grabs, an opportunity which is few and far between among drivers gunning for a chance to race at the height of the sport.
2026 is sure to be an exciting season of opportunity, with the championship even making a return to Madrid after 45 years. In the spirit of returning to familiar arrangements, we may be seeing Bottas take up one of the two driver seats at Cadillac next year. In a video posted on social media platform X, Bottas is heard making a cryptic remark with regards to a Cadillac SUV.
“What a nice seat,” he says with his hand on the driver’s seat, “I see there are two seats – both seem free.” A voice off-camera can be heard inviting him to sit in the car, to which Bottas replies, “Not yet.”
Team principal Graeme Lowdon and Dan Towriss are reportedly set to discuss the matter of the drivers for the Cadillac seats at the British Grand Prix.
Tesla to enter the world of F1?
While talks of what the 2026 Cadillac debut will look like continue, Tesla CEO Elon Musk has sparked heated conversation and debate online among F1 fans, where the electric engine innovator proposes a world where motorsport begins to adopt electric engine technology. After the recent Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal, Musk posted a video on the social media platform X where a race between two hybrid vehicles is depicted, posted by F1’s official X account.
“Let’s do a race between a pure EV and a gas hybrid,” replies Musk to the X video.
While not directly suggesting an F1 made up of electric vehicles, it does raise the question of where F1 is heading in terms of contributing towards the alternative engine revolution. Formula E, the all-electric single-seater racing championship, has already proven that electric motorsport can be fast, competitive, and commercially viable. It may just be a matter of time before we see electrical engines making their debut, especially considering F1 has committed to using 100% sustainable fuel by 2030.
