Valtteri Bottas made an immediate mark when, in 2007 at the age of 17, he won two Formula Renault races, and the following year he won both the Formula Renault Eurocup and the Formula Renault Northern European Cup. In 2009 he moved up to the Formula 3 Euroseries, finishing third in the championship. Although he did not win a race during that series, he did win the Masters of Formula 3 event, setting the fastest lap and taking pole in the process. He repeated his victory in 2010 by which time he had been signed by Williams as a test driver. In 2011 he switched to GP3 and, driving for Lotus ART, he made an indifferent start before wins on each of the last four weekends secured him the title. That was enough to gain him a reserve driver seat with Williams. "Valtteri is an extremely gifted, fast and very talented driver on a technical level," said ART boss Frederic Vasseur. "He is also a charming and intelligent human being with whom the team has always had the pleasure of working with. He is extremely fast, focused and mentally strong."
ESPN staff