Valtteri Bottas after the Canadian Grand Prix: “It’s good to be back in the top 10.”
After several complicated races for Valtteri Bottas, the Finnish driver is back in the points with a 10th place finish in Canada. An important point for Alfa Romeo as they move ahead of Haas in the standings and take 7th place.
Criticized for several weeks on his performance, Valtteri Bottas had to react. He did so in Canada. The Finn, starting 14th on the grid, had work to do to climb those few places and get into the points. In Montreal, he used his experience and took advantage of a good strategy to place himself in the top 10.
A good strategy
Bottas explains that by staying out with his hard tires, he was able to seize this opportunity to enter the top 10. Like the Ferrari drivers, not pitting under the safety car was beneficial for some drivers. “I think we made the right decision by staying out,” Bottas said.
Unaffected by the safety car, the Finn executed his plan. And even with a slightly long stint at the end of the race with the medium tires, it was the best option. The start with the hard tire was good, so overall I don’t think we could have done much more. The stint I had with the medium tires was a bit too long, so I think we did well with the strategy.
Valtteri Bottas satisfied with his race
The Finnish driver hadn’t scored any points this season since the opening round in Bahrain and his 8th place finish. A result that relieves him and the team. « I am satisfied with how the day went, and I think when you gain four positions in the race, it’s a good day. It’s nice to be back in the top 10, I think the race was good overall. »
“Even if it’s just one point, it’s something important, so I’m happy,” he declared. Indeed, this point allows Alfa Romeo to surpass Haas in the constructors’ standings.
A pinch of regret
Nevertheless, Bottas explains that he could have secured 9th place if Lance Stroll hadn’t overtaken him just before the finish line. Unfortunately, in the very end, Lance caught up with me just before the line. In the final straight, I ran out of battery, Bottas explained.
The Finn finds it a little amusing: « He can have it because I had the same thing with him in Baku back then! », thus reminding of the 2017 Baku Grand Prix where he overtook Stroll for 2nd place just a few meters before the finish line.
