The news that Bottas is now a Mercedes driver ends weeks of speculation as the 27-year-old Finn prepares to fill the vacancy left by the unexpected retirement of newly crowned world champion Nico Rosberg.

“Sometimes in life, unexpected circumstances provide interesting opportunities. Nico’s decision in December was a big surprise,” said Mercedes team chief Toto Wolff. “But weathering the storm makes you more resilient and we see this as another opportunity for the team to grow.”

“Valtteri is a no-nonsense guy: down to earth, straightforward and very focused. Pretty Finnish, to be honest, and a great fit for us. He has an impressive track record in the junior categories and nine podiums in F1. But now it’s time for the next level, to see how he can step up to challenge for race wins and for Championships. We know that we are already behind the curve in terms of preparations for the new season, so we’ve got a busy programme to get him integrated into the team. One thing is for sure: as I know Valtteri, he will give it everything.”

 

Bottas was unsurprisingly delighted to secure a drive with the team that has utterly dominated F1 over the past three years.

 

“It’s very exciting times for me,” he grinned. “I think it’s going to take a while to understand that this is really happening. It’s definitely another dream come true, to race in another team with such great history – especially in the recent years, which have been so impressive. I’m really proud to become a part of that and grateful to everyone at Mercedes for trusting my skills and giving me this opportunity.

 

“I’ve had a really warm welcome so far. Of course, I have a lot more people to meet and new faces to remember. But initially everything has felt very good. I’m really impressed with the facilities and I’m looking forward to getting to know everyone better. My first experience with Mercedes power was in F3 back in 2009 and, of course, I know the Power Unit well from the last three years with Williams. But there are a lot of new things to learn with the car and also with how the team operates at the factory, in testing and at the races.

“I’m ready to work hard, to prove myself to the team and to prove my skills. It’s going to be a challenging season and joining a new team makes it more work than normal. But I’m 100% ready for that. I’m training hard to be at my physical best because it will be much tougher with these new cars. I always set the bar really high, so my target is to perform from the first race. I’m full of energy and ready to get to work for this year and hopefully many more to come with Mercedes.”

In order to sign Bottas, Mercedes first had to strike a deal with the Williams team, to which Bottas had been signed for 2016 and beyond.

Bottas’ replacement at Williams ironically is his team-mate from 2016, Felipe Massa, who had been effectively squeezed into reluctant retirement at the end of last season by Williams’ decision to sign youngster Lance Stroll, whose business tycoon father is reportedly bank rolling his son’s F1 debut to the tune of tens of millions of dollars.

Just as Rosberg's shock decision to retire has presented one Williams driver with an opportunity to snare the most coveted seat in F1, it provided the other with an unexpected repreive.