Bottas "cheeky but understandable" with late fastest-lap bid - Wolff

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has described Valtteri Bottas as "cheeky" in setting a late fastest lap despite being instructed to abort.

With five laps remaining in the Dutch Grand Prix, due to safety concerns with wearing medium-compound tyres, Mercedes stopped Bottas and fitted the soft Pirellis.

Despite being told not to set the fastest lap, as team-mate Lewis Hamilton had that point in hand at that stage, Bottas subsequently purpled the first two sectors, at which point chief strategist James Vowles instructed him to abort.

Although Bottas did back off, he still went on to set the fastest lap, forcing Mercedes to bring in Hamilton to ensure he reclaimed a crucial point.

“It was a bit cheeky but understandable," said Wolff. "Valtteri is always on the receiving end because this championship is so tight.

"He lifted off massively in the last sector, and it was clear that Lewis would do the quickest lap and Valtteri knew about it.

“At the end, Lewis, in his fight for the drivers’ championship, got the point and it is all good.”

Asked if Bottas had followed the instruction literally or just technically, Wolff replied: “It could have ended up in a loss of a point for Lewis, and it would have not been right because he had the fastest lap until then.

"But you have to understand also, at that point, a certain degree of frustration in Valtteri, and at the end everything is good.

“We’re going to talk about it in a most amicable and professional way.”

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