Mercedes hail Bottas' most impressive showing of the year
Mercedes hail Bottas' most impressive showing of the year
Mercedes trackside engineering director Andrew Shovlin believes Valtteri Bottas delivered his most impressive performance of the current F1 season across the Italian Grand Prix weekend.
Just a few days after it was confirmed Bottas would be leaving the team at the end of the year after five seasons to join Alfa Romeo, the Finn produced a stellar display at Monza.
Bottas was initially fastest in Friday qualifying before winning the sprint qualifying on Saturday, but in serving grid penalties for a power unit change it dropped him to last on the grid.
Bottas still boldly suggested he would finish on the podium, and he was true to his word as he claimed third behind McLaren duo Daniel Ricciardo and Lando Norris.
Asked if it was Bottas' most impressive showing of the year, Shovlin said: "Yeah, I think it was definitely.
"He was very impressive in qualifying. He had a tricky morning session but really got it together with a very, very solid qualifying.
"In the race, Valtteri has often found it harder than Lewis to get through the traffic but he overtook more than anyone. He just kept attacking and attacking, keeping the tyres in good shape so we're super proud of the job he has done."
At one stage, when Bottas was scything his way past his rivals on the medium tyre compared to many around him on the hard, it appeared as if he was on course for victory.
As to whether the win was genuinely on, Shovlin added: "Certainly he was thinking that way. He went into the day saying he was going to end up on the podium so we've seen a lot of fighting spirit from him.
"And there are windows on that medium that we would have had a bit better warm-up on the restart but unfortunately everyone seemed to be doing the same straight line [speed].
"The DRS also has a very, very small effect because the rear wing doesn't have anything like the normal level of drag. We're always optimistic but he did well to get the podium."
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
Mercedes hint at ‘FUNDAMENTAL’ issues after early season woes
- 15 minutes ago
F1 stars set for THRILLING championship-winning car drive
- 1 hour ago
Motorsport chief SLAMS F1 over Red Bull
- 2 hours ago
Former F1 boss makes SHOCKING Verstappen declaration
- 3 hours ago
Former F1 boss says Red Bull 'rethink' underway amid Horner saga
- 3 hours ago
F1 News Today: Horner investigation TOLL on Verstappen revealed as question marks arise over Hamilton Ferrari switch
- Today 05:57
F1 Race Calendar
-
GP BAHRAIN
29 Feb - 2 Mar
Max Verstappen
-
GP SAUDI ARABIA
7 - 9 Mar
Max Verstappen
- GP AUSTRALIA 22 - 24 Mar
- GP JAPAN 5 - 7 Apr
- GP CHINA 19 - 21 Apr
- GP USA 3 - 6 May
- GP ITALY 17 - 19 May
Related news
Hamilton hits out at 'SHOCKING' Mercedes performance
F1 regulations DON'T help competitive racing insists Mercedes chief
F1 aero chief declares key area Red Bull are NOT quickest
Wolff SNUBS Bearman while revealing his 'standout' F1 rising star
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