Valtteri Bottas looks to secure F1 future with Alfa Romeo

Valtteri Bottas is eager to compete in Formula 1 for several years as he enters a second year with the Swiss-based squad Alfa Romeo.

The Finnish driver has carved out a new role for himself since leaving Mercedes at the end of 2021, returning to the midfield where he first made a name for himself in F1 with Williams.

Bottas was quick to make an impact with Alfa Romeo last season, securing a multitude of strong points finishes at the start of the year.

Although last year's C42 machine lost out to other cars in the midfield throughout the season, Bottas' early-season contribution was critical to Alfa finishing sixth in the standings.

The first indications from 2023 are less positive for the Hinwil outfit, even with an impressive first-race weekend in Bahrain - where the 33-year-old secured a strong P8 finish.

Aston Martin's resurgence as a top-four team has made life extremely difficult for the rest of the field, limiting opportunities for the likes of Alfa Romeo to finish in the points.

A chaotic race in Australia - where Zhou Guanyu claimed his first points of the year - has been the only anomaly where midfield teams were able to capitalise on retirements.

Moving forward, the Swiss squad must find improvements and introduce upgrades if they are to secure top-10 finishes without relying on issues elsewhere on the grid.

Valtteri Bottas has proven that he can maximise upper-midfield machinery since his arrival last season, but regularly competing for points with the 7th, 8th or 9th-fastest car will be a huge challenge.

The likes of Kevin Magnussen, Nico Hulkenberg and Lando Norris demonstrate the high calibre of drivers throughout the field - even beyond the front-runners.

With all this in mind, Alfa Romeo must decide if there are other options in the market that are more compatible with the team's long-term goals.

It seems unlikely there are other drivers available that will offer more from a performance standpoint than Valtteri Bottas, but Audi's growing involvement might result in a change in direction.

Speaking after the first few rounds, the Finnish driver believes he has more to give in F1:

"I’m still young compared to some. I’m 33. I still don’t see my Formula 1 career ending in the near future," formu1a.uno quotes him as saying.

“And I don’t feel any performance losses on my driving or the way I work with the team.

“It's interesting for the whole race team and company what is happening.

"Of course, being part of a car manufacturer is something that you almost need if you want to win in F1."