Despite Terming Bottas as His Best Team Mate, Lewis Hamilton Became the Primary Reason Behind Valtteri Leaving Mercedes

This sport has seen some legendary drivers. But to our recent memory, Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen stick out. While Verstappen has only just embarked on his journey towards Formula 1 immortality, 7x champion Hamilton has been there and done that. On the flip side of the coin, it’s always fair to spare a thought for the men who have gone toe-to-toe against them in equal machinery and held their own ground. George Russell is on a similar mission.

Russell has been strapped into the Mercedes alongside the 38-year-old since 2022. While currently, he has been getting the better of Hamilton, he only has Valtteri Bottas to look toward, to understand the eternal pains of going up against a seasoned challenger such as Hamilton.

How Lewis Hamilton left Valtteri Bottas a bitter man

When Valtteri Bottas came out of his Mercedes contract to join Alfa Romeo, he was a changed and happier man. This is testament enough of the trials and tribulations the Finn faced while being teammates with arguably the greatest driver this sport has seen. So much so that he eventually got the boot at the Silver Arrows.

Sky Sports F1 pundit, Karun Chandhok chronicled Bottas’ troubled time at Mercedes recently. He said, “He [Bottas] just got more and more angry and frustrated and bitter about it,” as quoted by Express UK.

Chandhok added, “I think it’s a poisoned chalice if your team-mate to Max [Verstappen], Lewis, [Michael] Schumacher, etc. It is quite good because it means you’re inevitably in one of the best cars on the grid or one of the top three, but the downside is you’re always compared to the genius in the other car.”

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But while Bottas went through hell and back with Hamilton, he has an accolade to show for it.

Hamilton gave Valtteri Bottas the highest praise

It’s no secret that Hamilton is a generational talent. His racing acumen is second to none. Naturally, if a driver of his caliber acknowledges you pushing him to the very limit of his capabilities and still extracting the maximum from him and the team, then that must surely mean something.

Back in 2021, Hamilton hailed the Finn as his best teammate ever. ESPN quoted him as saying, “He has been the best teammate I’ve had the pleasure of working with. Your speed and resilience has been impressive, but where you truly stand out to me is the human being you are. You are greater than you know, and I know there’s a bright future ahead for you.”

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Can George Russell be the first one to outclass Lewis Hamilton completely?