Bottas not in favour of 'mixing other series with F1'

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Valtteri Bottas doubts he'll ever take a leaf out Fernando Alonso's book of racing and venture out to other motorsport series while racing in F1.

Alonso's 'Triple Crown' ambitions took the McLaren driver to Indianapolis last year, and have set him on the road to Le Mans with Toyota this season.

Bottas however feels the intensity and workload of Grand Prix racing requires an exclusive focus.

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"If he feels he has the time and energy for that, it's no issue," said the Mercedes driver who conquered his first three F1 wins in 2017.

"Maybe he likes to try new things because he's been in Formula1 for a long time," he told Ilta Sanomat newspaper.

"But at this point I don't think I would like to start mixing other series with the Formula 1 season. I'd rather focus fully on F1," Bottas added.

To Bottas' point, the F1 calendar has already swelled to 21 races for 2018, and Liberty Media has talked about adding even more races in the near future.

"We have 21 races now but 25 is definitely the upper limit," said the Finn.

"It's going to be difficult on the logistics side to do that. There are the people to think about and costs will also get a lot higher if the teams have to get more people in."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.