Bottas: 'Things would be different if I wasn't here'

Valtteri Bottas believes he's a "good asset" for Mercedes and insists things would "definitely be different" without him in the championship winning team.

Speculation is mounting over Mercedes' impending decision regarding its 2022 line-up, with pundits expecting the German outfit to announce ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix at the end of the month George Russell as Lewis Hamilton's future teammate.

But Bottas - whose blunder at the start of the Hungarian Grand Prix likely left Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff unimpressed - isn't giving up on his hopes of remaining at Brackley for a sixth season.

"I’m confident to say I am a good asset for the team and it definitely would be different if I wasn’t here," said the Finn in Hungary.

"I’m confident with my driving skills, but I don’t make the decisions. The future will show."

Despite his lackluster 2021 season, in relative terms, in which he has yet to win a race, Bottas believes he has not yet reached his peak as a leading driver, and is still learning with each passing race.

"There is nothing holding me back at the moment," he added. "Definitely, I would say I feel like in my career I am peaking. I still haven’t reached that yet, there are always things I am learning and getting better at.

• Read also - Bottas on future: 'One race won't influence anything'

"I’ve definitely learned so much about myself in the recent years. As a driver and as a human being and being able to understand yourself and what works for you is important.

"I feel like nowadays whatever is thrown at me will not shake me and I feel like I am ready for anything and any kind of challenge in the future. Definitely I have learned a lot.

"I will try everything I can for myself and for the team for the future, whatever happens."

Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter