Ending weeks of constant speculation, Mercedes have announced Finnish driver Valtteri Bottas will partner Lewis Hamilton for the 2017 Formula 1 season, while Felipe Massa will come out of retirement to replace the Finn at Williams.
The 27-year-old Bottas, has never won a race in his 77 starts, a stat which he will look to remedy in the coming season, but it looks likely that Mercedes will now very much be a one-horse team as opposed to the dual-driver strategy they had gone with in recent years.
After 2016 F1 Champion Nico Rosberg sensationally announced his retirement days after winning his maiden drivers title in December, Mercedes had to scramble to find a suitable partner for the Hamilton.
Mercedes came to a deal with Williams to allow Bottas to be released from his contract, who has been on the podium 9 times since making his debut in 2013.
While he hasn't won a single race, to his credit Bottas outperformed his experienced teammate Massa for the past two years, placing above him in the year-ending drivers’ standings in 2015 and 2016.