Valtteri Bottas has enjoyed a superb career in Formula 1, taking 10 victories after making his debut at the start of the 2013 season.
Bottas may be coming towards the end of his Formula 1 career, as Sauber might be fielding an all-new lineup from next year.
Nico Hulkenberg has already been announced and expects to lead the team forward into their new era with Audi in 2026. Younger drivers such as Gabriel Bortoleto and Franco Colapinto have also been rumoured to take the other drive.
Bottas may need to look outside of Formula 1 in the near future, and he seems to be open to racing in IndyCar.
He explained on the LeBatardShow YouTube channel that he sees IndyCar as a difficult championship and the car is different to Formula 1.
Valtteri Bottas believes IndyCar would be ‘the one’ in his career
IndyCar has become very popular in recent years among drivers at the end of their Formula 1 career such as Romain Grosjean.
The Frenchman has enjoyed his time racing in North America despite a difficult outing at the Music City Grand Prix.
IndyCar has also given a second wind to Marcus Ericsson’s career after a forgettable five-year spell in Formula 1.
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The Swede won the Indy 500 in 2023 for Chip Ganassi Racing, reaching the pinnacle of IndyCar and taking victory at The Brickyard.
IndyCar’s high level of racing and the group of drivers he is familiar with may appeal to Bottas, who explained that learning new circuits would be challenging in the series.
He said: “Indycar, that would be the one. I don’t think it’s yet, but if I’m really putting it out there, I’m still in my mid-30s. I still have time. In the car, the more I’ve been looking into it, it’s super tough.
“You’ve got new tracks that I would have never been into. Some of them never heard about. It’s a completely different car, like no power steering, very different handling.
“They’ve got all those tracks that I’ve never done, so it would be a huge, huge challenge, no doubt. But it could be a challenge one day. It’s not yet, but it’s something that I would get into, obviously, with big goals in some years ahead, but it’s not yet.”
Adjusting to racing on ovals is a challenge in IndyCar
Ovals present a unique aspect to the NTT IndyCar Series as they are present in North America but less so in Europe.
Drivers such as Josef Newgarden have been superb on ovals, while Alex Palou is yet to win on an oval despite being a three-time champion.
IndyCar also has different types of ovals, adding to the complexity of learning how to maximse lap time away from road and street courses.
Indianapolis Motor Speedway is very fast, while short ovals such as Iowa Speedway require a deft touch on the brake pedal and finesse to achieve a good result.