Bottas competes in the 2022 Race of Champions in Sweden
After years of racing in stadiums around the world, ROC returns to its terrain roots with a course on the frozen Baltic Sea at the Swedish town of Pite Havsbad.
Located near the Arctic Circle, the organizers have called the ROC Sweden track as the event’s “fastest and widest” track in history.
Mercedes F1 star Bottas is the latest name on the starting list for the all-star event out of season, along with Scandinavians Tom Kristensen, Johan Kristoffersson, Mattias Ekstrom and Petter Solberg, and Travis Pastrana.
He will also represent Team Finland in the ROC Nations Cup, with the identity of his teammate not yet announced.
Bottas, who is currently third in the F1 drivers’ position, recently announced that he will move to Alfa Romeo in 2022 after five years as Lewis Hamilton’s teammate at Mercedes, a period that has yielded nine grand prix wins so far.
Valtteri Bottas drives a Citroen DS3 WRC
The 32-year-old Finn also has lots of off-road experience, having competed in the Arctic Lapland Rally three times and taken a class podium in January this year.
“I’m really looking forward to finally being able to compete in the Race of Champions after watching the event on TV for many years,” said Bottas.
“The fact that this year’s event will be held on snow and ice makes it even more interesting.
“I have competed in the Arctic Rally a few times, so hopefully that experience will help when we strive to beat the strong competition and especially our Nordic neighbors from Sweden and Norway to increase Finland’s many victories in both individual ROC and ROC Nations Cup.”
In addition to its new terrain format, which is a nod to its early Gran Canaria days, ROC is committed to making its first endeavor in Sweden sustainable, including the use of fossil-free biofuels and the reintroduction of electric cars.
The event will include the electric FIA RX2e rallycross car and Porsche’s new 425 hp 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport from Porsche, which will also provide an electric fleet for the organizers.