Bottas claims "something fundamentally wrong" with "unpredictable" Mercedes
Bottas claims "something fundamentally wrong" with "unpredictable" Mercedes
Valtteri Bottas was left to declare there to be "something fundamentally wrong" with his Mercedes following a wretched practice outing for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Bottas was left languishing in 16th place on the timesheet at the end of FP2, two seconds behind pacesetter in Red Bull's Sergio Perez and a second behind team-mate Lewis Hamilton whose time was only good enough for 11th.
The Finn was at least able to take some comfort from the long-run pace of the W12, but overall was left shaking his head at the problems with the car.
"There is something fundamentally wrong and we need to figure out what," said Bottas.
"It was very tricky for us and [we are] clearly lacking pace. It feels like it's just overall grip. The balance is not that far off.
"Okay, the car is maybe a bit unpredictable but it just feels like it is lacking grip and is sliding around so I think it's going to be a long night."
Monaco woes return with a vengeance
At the recent Monaco GP, Mercedes struggled with tyre warm-up, with the problem appearing to have returned in Baku.
Unlike in the Principality, however, Bottas has so far been unable to drive around the issue.
"It was tougher [than Monaco]," added Bottas. "Monaco wasn't easy but at least we were more or less there by the time of qualifying and now we seem quite a bit off.
"It has definitely been a more challenging day than we had anticipated and we need to find out exactly why."
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
Audi agree STAR driver contract as Mercedes driver tipped for new F1 seat THIS season - GPFans F1 Recap
- 1 hour ago
Ferrari show off new-look drivers following HUGE announcement
- 2 hours ago
McLaren leading fight for HUGE cash injection
- 3 hours ago
Newey set to announce STUNNING Red Bull departure
- Yesterday 17:57
Newey Red Bull exit wish CONFIRMED as F1 guru's reasons revealed
- Yesterday 20:57
F1 legend reveals 'FLOOD' of death threats after controversial decision
- Yesterday 19:57
Related news
Top exciting Red Bull junior team drivers who could REPLACE De Vries
Best EVER start to a season and unwanted Ferrari records – Azerbaijan GP stats and facts
Wolff reveals rivalry Verstappen will NEVER shake after Russell clash
Marko slams 'FORCEFUL' move that sparked Azerbaijan GP outrage
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860