Bottas happy to fight for long-term Mercedes deal
Mercedes' new man Valtteri Bottas believes he has what it takes to challenge Lewis Hamilton in Formula One in 2017.
Valtteri Bottas is relishing the chance to prove his long-term title-chasing credentials at Mercedes, as he settles into life at the Formula One world champions.
The Finn swapped Williams for the Silver Arrows last month as a replacement for retired drivers' champion Nico Rosberg.
Bottas has penned a deal for the 2017 season, but is yet to be guaranteed a contract beyond the end of year, with the likes of Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso - with six titles between them - on the market for 2018.
But Bottas is happy to accept his precarious position and is looking forward to the challenge of proving himself at the top level alongside and against Lewis Hamilton.
Speaking at the Silverstone launch of Mercedes' 2017 car, Bottas said of his future with the team: "That is completely up to me really.
"And that's how it goes in Formula One. I was given this opportunity to race for Mercedes and if I want that to continue, it's up to me to perform.
"I realise that completely and it's been the same situation every season in my career that the next year has been a bit unknown, so nothing changes in that way.
"The team is expecting me to perform, to be fighting well with Lewis and that is my goal as well. If and when the season will go well, hopefully we can have a long future together with Mercedes.
"That is the intention."
Rosberg and Hamilton's spell as team-mates was often a rocky one with on-track scraps regularly boiling into personal squabbles.
Bottas does not envisage butting heads with the Brit, but he is confident that he can push his world-champion colleague all the way.
"It's going to be a great challenge for me going up against Lewis as my team-mate but at the same time we are team-mates and we need to work for the team," he said.
"It's never going to be easy to beat Lewis, that's a fact. He's a three-time world champion.
"I've got no special plan whatsoever [to beat Hamilton] other than keep doing what I'm doing and that is improve every day as a driver.
"We still haven't done a single lap together at the same time with a similar car so it's only guessing, we will find out very soon.
"I'm feeling good for the season and time will show how good it really is, I will do all I can and trust my talent."