Valtteri Bottas to combine Mercedes reserve role with Cadillac prep

Valtteri Bottas will begin assisting Cadillac’s new Formula 1 effort this season, even while he continues in his current position as Mercedes’ reserve driver.

The Finn was officially presented with Sergio Perez as part of Cadillac’s debut lineup at a launch in New York. Team boss Graeme Lowdon highlighted the cooperation shown by Mercedes in allowing Bottas to get involved early.

He said: “I would like to express my thanks to all the people at Mercedes, especially Toto (Wolff), who have been extremely supportive in our discussions with Valtteri and have been extremely helpful in coordinating a smooth transition at the right time.

“I have a lot of respect for Mercedes and it’s good to see that they are also showing the respect for Valtteri. I think everyone wants to see him racing on the grid again. Toto has been very helpful in that regard so I want to put that on record.”

Bottas explained he will be splitting his time for the rest of 2025, saying: “My work will start (at Cadillac) but as Graham said, I’m still under contract with Mercedes and will continue to be there every race weekend as a reserve.

“As a result, my time available will be limited. I won’t go into the details of how, when and where, but I will be involved in any important decisions that are made before the first test.”

Perez admitted he has had little time in single-seaters since leaving Red Bull at the end of 2024.

“I’ve stayed fit, although in recent months I’ve only been karting with my son,” he said. “But there are plans with the team to have me driving a Formula 1 car before the end of the year.”

"That is complicated by Cadillac’s lack of a TPC (Testing of Previous Cars) machine, but we will be doing some track testing this year,” Lowdon confirmed. “Of course, to do that we will have to cooperate with others, but that is perfectly permitted under the rules.”

With Perez needing mileage after a year out, and Bottas restricted to limited runs as Mercedes’ stand-in this season, both drivers are expected to benefit from any early track work Cadillac can arrange.