Recently, 1998 and 1999 world champion Mika Hakkinen spoke about various subjects. Among them, he spoke about compatriot Valtteri Bottas and his 2020 season. The older Finn made a surprising prediction that Bottas could stun everyone and win the 2020 championship.

Since 2017, Bottas has been in Lewis Hamilton’s shadow at Mercedes and played second fiddle. However, Hakkinen is confident that the Finnish Mercedes driver can take his first drivers’ title. One can argue that Bottas had a brilliant 2019 season, especially in the early half.

Five pole positions, four victories and championship runner up is his best placing to date. It is also a surefire sign that he is a force to be reckoned with. Now, Hakkinen firmly believes that Valtteri Bottas can go from runner-up to champion this year.

“Valtteri has a great position in Mercedes,” Hakkinen told the F1 Nation podcast. “He’s a mega great driver, and I am confident that he’s better than ever.

“I have an extremely high expectation for him to be world champion this year – and that’s what we’ve been working very hard on for years, [giving him] all the qualities, all the tools for him to get there. He’s been working hard.”

All or nothing for Valtteri Bottas

Ahead of the severely shortened 2020 season, Bottas has it all to do to convince Mercedes to retain him. Several eyes are trained on his seat, so, he is on a mission to prove that he deserves to stay. However, he faces stiff competition from the likes of Sebastian Vettel and Mercedes-backed George Russell.

On the other end of the scale, Bottas could be an ideal candidate to take the Renault seat that Daniel Ricciardo is vacating. The French team have recently restated their commitment to remaining in Formula 1 for the foreseeable future. With a driver like Bottas, Renault could benefit with a driver of his calibre.

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