Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton pictured together during their together at Mercedes.
Image: AFP
While one driver stole the show, winning seven world titles, his partner often went unnoticed and under-appreciated.
This has been confirmed after Valtteri Bottas opened up about the "ugly side" of being a teammate to Lewis Hamilton.
Bottas has never shied away from acknowledging Hamilton’s greatness, but his latest reflections reveal just how costly that partnership became on a personal level. During his five seasons at Mercedes, Bottas was thrust into one of the most demanding roles in modern Formula 1: supporting a driver chasing history while trying to carve out a legacy of his own.
Signed in 2017 to replace Nico Rosberg, the dynamic was clear almost immediately. Hamilton was the team’s undisputed title contender, while Bottas was expected to deliver points, strategy support, and occasional race wins when circumstances allowed. On paper, it looked like an opportunity; in reality, it often felt like a limitation.
The Finnish driver has now admitted that the psychological toll of that role nearly pushed him out of the sport entirely.
The pressure of being labelled a “wingman”, combined with seasons where wins were rare and team orders were frequent, left him questioning whether he still belonged at the sharp end of the grid.
There were moments of success — pole positions, race victories and strong qualifying performances — but they were often overshadowed by the bigger picture: Hamilton’s dominance and the team’s clear championship priorities. For Bottas, that meant accepting situations where personal ambition had to be sacrificed for team strategy.
He has since reflected that the experience chipped away at his confidence, particularly during difficult stretches when results did not match expectations. At one point, overwhelmed by the pressure and scrutiny, he seriously considered stepping away from Formula 1 altogether during the winter break.
What ultimately kept him in the sport was a reset in mindset and a renewed determination to race on his own terms.
Since leaving Mercedes, Bottas has spoken more openly about the mental strain of that era — not with bitterness, but with honesty about how fine the line is between being a team player and losing your own identity.
His story stands as a reminder that even in the most successful teams, the cost of success is not always shared equally.
Jehran Naidoo is sports reporter for Independent Media and social media coordinator of the our YouTube channel The Clutch.