Valtteri Bottas has been hit with a five-place grid penalty for the Las Vegas Grand Prix after taking a new energy store. This new power unit component breached the FIA’s allowance for the season, landing him a handicap for Sunday’s race.
Four other drivers made changes to their cars as Sergio Perez and Alex Albon applied new exhaust systems, along with the VCARB duo of Yuki Tsunoda and Liam Lawson. However, these new components fell within the teams’ allocations for the season, so no penalties were handed out.
This news comes as another blow to Bottas, who is still trying to show off his talents to prospective new employers for the 2025 season. The Finn’s departure from Sauber was confirmed after the Brazilian Grand Prix, along with team-mate Zhou Guanyu.
With the only available seat on the 2025 grid being at VCARB and nearly all competitive seats in IndyCar accounted for, Bottas’ chances of racing full-time next season now rest on a transition into the World Endurance Championship.
Much more likely is a year on the sidelines with Mercedes in an attempt to replicate Nico Hulkenberg’s late-career revival with Haas. The German racer spent two years as Aston Martin’s reserve driver, but his stocks are extremely high after a strong return to the grid.
Discussing his plans moving forward, the 10-time Grand Prix winner said: “The way my kind of active F1 driving career ended for now, it wasn’t the best way, that you can’t really decide yourself.
“I feel like still I have lots to give the sport and I still love it. I love racing against the best drivers in the world in the best cars in the world – that’s what I love. I’m just trying to figure out now what is the next move. I don’t really have that much more [to say]. I’m taking it day by day and there’s some interesting stuff on the table.”
Bottas also effectively ended any speculation about moving to another series. “For me, at the moment, I feel like jumping into a new category comes quite quick,” he continued. “We’re almost in December.
“I think that’d be more realistic if I don’t find a seat in F1 during 2025 or for 2026. It’s all these things that I need to kind of try and plan, but the picture has not even formed in my head what is the ideal situation.”
