Bottas pumped to team up with ‘easy to work with’ Perez

Valtteri Bottas can’t wait to get started at CadillacF1 – and he’s particularly enthusiastic about joining forces with Sergio Perez, believing the pair will work well together.

After a year on the sidelines in 2025, both drivers are ready to roar back into action, and Bottas believes their chemistry could be the key to Cadillac’s rise in the ultra-competitive F1 landscape.

The Finn, a ten-time race winner and former Mercedes stalwart, says the pair share a hunger and focus that will serve their new team well from day one.

“We’re going to make a good team”

“I think he's as excited as I am, he’s looking forward to it,” Bottas told Crash.net when asked about working with Perez.

“He's had a different year. I think he's definitely travelled less than me. Some good quality family time, which can be sometimes good, a bit of a reset. But he's looking forward to it.”

Bottas believes the two veterans can combine experience with teamwork to help Cadillac establish itself quickly in the sport.

“I think we can really work well together. I think we're going to make a good team. And us as a driver pairing, I think we can really put the team first, which is what the team needs for the years ahead,” he said.

The 36-year-old knows what it takes to build success from the inside thanks to his experience alongside Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes from 2017 to 2021. Bottas brings deep knowledge of what makes a team culture thrive – something he’s eager to recreate with Cadillac.

Mutual respect, shared goals

Despite being rivals for years – including during the heated 2021 title battle – Bottas says his relationship with Perez has always been cordial.

“He’s been always good. He’s been always nice to me. I've always had respect for him. He's been great,” he explained.

And when it comes to teamwork, Bottas expects a smooth partnership.

“He seems like an easy guy to work with and I’m an easy guy to work with as well. So it should be all right,” he added with a grin.

Both drivers’ experience — Bottas’s 10 wins and 20 poles for Mercedes and Perez’s six victories with Racing Point and Red Bull — makes Cadillac’s debut lineup one of the most seasoned ever for a new team.

But the Finn insists their focus will be on collaboration, not competition.

“I think the main thing for us is to work together and really drive the team forward together, not to waste time on competing against each other too much,” he said.

“I think that needs to be the priority and we both understand that. But again, let's hope we can be closely matched. That always helps us both to improve and push further. That would be nice.”

• Read also: Bottas chimes in on Hamilton’s Ferrari struggles

With Cadillac’s entry promising to inject fresh American energy into the grid, Bottas’s calm professionalism and Perez’s race-winning instinct could prove the perfect mix.

Both drivers are out to make a statement – and if their mutual respect turns into genuine on-track chemistry, Cadillac’s rookie season might be anything but ordinary.

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