Valtteri Bottas says he would not have accepted another one-year deal with Mercedes had the Brackley squad offered him such an option for 2022.
Bottas will depart Mercedes at the end of the current season to embark on a new multi-year endeavor with Alfa Romeo Racing, with George Russell taking over the Finn's seat.
From the outset of the 2021 season, the writing appeared to be on the wall for Bottas who joined Mercedes in 2017 in the wake of the shock retirement from F1 of 2016 world champion Nico Rosberg.
Every year, there has speculation about Bottas' future with Mercedes due to the Finn's one-year deals with the team.
When Bottas enquired earlier this year about his prospects for 2022 and was told by Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff that, in any case, a multi-year deal would not be forthcoming, it triggered his desire "to go for something new".
©Mercedes
"He knew that at some point we need to make decisions," Bottas said, speaking on F1's official 'Beyond the Grid' podcast.
"And already, I had decided myself that if I can’t get two years or more with Mercedes, I’m definitely going to go for something new.
"And it was a simple question of can he offer me two years or more? And he said, no he can’t, at this moment.
"Then it was quite easy. Then it was very natural to get George in the car because he has been kind of part of the team for a long time. And it’s a new generation, and that’s also how the sport is evolving.
"Mercedes have had this young driver programme, and George has been in that for a long time.
"In case he still develops further and becomes more experienced and even quicker, they didn’t want to miss the opportunity. So, for me, it’s all good. I’m really happy."
Bottas has conquered all of his ten Grand Prix wins with Mercedes, and contributed significantly to the team's last four Constructors' titles and to teammate Lewis Hamilton's success.
On Friday in Sao Paulo, Bottas was asked why Mercedes had never offered him more than a one-year contract. But the Finn remained evasive although he believed the approach "made sense".
"I think I understand the situation quite well," he replied. "It would be better for Toto to answer than for me to put any exact words in his mouth.
"But I have an understanding with the situation. It makes sense to me in a way so that’s all good."
Speaking about his two-year Alfa deal, Bottas admitted the multi-year agreement has had "a bigger effect to me than I thought it would be."
"Because once everything was done and I knew what I was going to do for the next few years, I just felt a bit more freedom, less pressure in a way, almost like a weight lifted off my shoulders – that’s the feeling.
"It’s something that I never had before and I know that I can focus onto something with the team, with the people around me for few years ahead, not just focusing for one year, and normally it’s like six months that I need to fight for my seat.
"So, just being able to have that kind of trust from a team that they know that I’m going do the best I can for a few years, it just feels good. And I can just really, really focus on the job and think about what I’m going to do next year."
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