Valtteri Bottas says it was his dream since he was a child to become the F1 champion and he is eager for the 2020 season to get underway.
During his interview for Marcedes’ Deep Dive series, Valtteri Bottas talked about the difficulties caused by the coronavirus outbreak.
“Always when you can’t do the things you would like to do it makes you appreciate it more, which is a shame, and I’m sure we can learn from this,” said the Finn.
“I’m sure many people now in this situation have had things in the mind they would love to do, but they can’t . Maybe when things are back to normal, a good lesson for all of us will be to appreciate the things we are able to do in everyday life.
“I really want to continue for multiple years because I want to reach my targets. I really enjoy it, I love it. I miss F1.”
Bottas goes on to say one of those targets, and quite possibly the main one, is the Formula 1 World Championship.
“Since a kid, I’ve had this target in my career to be a world champion, and obviously I still haven’t achieved it, so that keeps me going, and that keeps me motivated.
“Every single year that makes me want to do everything better than I’ve done before. Okay, you can’t always get there. There are always ups and downs in your career, but those downs you need to turn into a strength.
“I think now, within myself, how things are in my life, and also in terms of my driving, and how we are working with the team, we’ve definitely found the right path, and I really feel the improvements at the moment. That’s why I’m eager to get driving.”
The current plan is for the Formula 1 season to start in July with the Austrian Grand Prix, which would then be followed by a full summer of racing. Bottas is aware this will change the season’s dynamic.
“It is a different season for every driver, an exceptional Formula 1 season because everything is so postponed.
“Once things start, it will be pretty full-on, and you need to be in the rhythm quickly because we still don’t have 100% confirmation how many races we are going to do, so maybe the season will be less races than normal most likely.
“So you really need to make every single grand prix count, and to find that driving rhythm and be on the pace from the first weekend onwards, that’s going to be the key. So yeah, trying to be as ready to jump in the car whenever it will happen.
“It’s a very specific and very strange season ahead, for sure,” concluded the Finn.