Despite the fact that we had no real racing so far this year, it does not mean we did not have our share of big news and headlines in those past few months. With the first big announcement of Sebastian Vettel leaving Scuderia Ferrari with the end of 2020, then the information that Carlos Sainz will replace him, to the confirmation that it will be Daniel Ricciardo replacing the Spaniard in McLaren, after his farewell with Renault by the end of 2020. Now, it seems like another driver might be on the move, as many claim that Valtteri Bottas and his manager are in talks with Renault and other teams. 

There have been speculations that Bottas and manager Didier Coton thrown their name into the talks about the vacant 2021 Renault seat with the managing director of Renault F1 Cyril Abiteboul. Neither of the sides has confirmed the rumours, but Toto Wolff has added his own outlook into the conversation, admitting he would not like to want to work with a driver having the knowledge he will leave by the end of the season. 

As said by Wolff in conversation with ESPN: “How the events panned out was fast and different because one must not forget there is still a full season to race. And you would rarely take decisions so early in the season because be it for Daniel at Renault, or Carlos at McLaren, or Sebastian at Ferrari, these guys will race the new kit, will see all the innovation, will need to be involved in the development of the vehicle and need to play their team part also in some of the competitions. So, yes, these decisions came about quicker than I would have done but it’s interesting to watch.”

According to French publication Auto Hebdo and their report, “Even though Bottas may not want to leave, team boss Toto Wolff would rather he join the Renault team”. 

With the rumours of Vettel coming to Mercedes after the end of his stunt at Ferrari with the end of 2020, and the movement in the drivers market, Bottas could have seen it as a chance to look into other possibilities for his future. Additionally, there has been also talks about the further possibility of George Russel taking his place at some point, due to his association with Mercedes.

Since there has been nothing yet confirmed, we might need to wait for the season to finally begin to have any more information on this topic itself.