Getting that win has definitely given me a lot of confidence that I can do it — because I always thought that I had the ability Bottas aims for Sochi repeat at Barca
Barcelona, May 11: Valtteri Bottas seeks to prove his maiden Formula One success at Sochi was no fluke by repeating the feat for champions Mercedes in this weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix.
The unflappable Finn, who has emerged as a serious threat not only to his more celebrated team-mate Lewis Hamilton, but also Ferrari’s championship leader Sebastian Vettel, believes his determination, form and speed justify his optimism.
“Getting that win has definitely given me a lot of confidence that I can do it because I always thought that I had the ability.
“And now it’s done all I want to do is to go and win again and again,” said Bottas.
Another Bottas win would not be a surprise at a venue that has a habit of producing more different winners than anywhere else - if he is successful, he will be the 11th different winner in as many years.
The Circuit de Catalunya, a track drivers and teams know intimately from days of pre-season testing, is capable of throwing up the most unexpected and unpredictable results.
That was demonstrated last year by Dutch teenager Max Verstappen’s win on his debut for Red Bull.
Bottas’ recent bright form - pole position in Bahrain and victory at Sochi - has confirmed him as a worthy successor to retired 2016 world champion Nico Rosberg at Mercedes where, temporarily, he has managed to put three-time world champion Hamilton in the shade.
But that does not mean much as the teams, all with upgraded packages, begin the European season with Ferrari likely to set the pace if the weather conditions put the onus on tyre management.
The Italian team has a car that is less demanding on its rubber and operates well across a wider range of temperatures than the Mercedes.
For Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, it is a concern, but not yet a serious worry.
“I don’t think there is a particular pattern yet,” he said. “It is all very marginal with tyre compounds, interaction with the track, the surface of the track and the track temperature itself.
“But, one thing is for sure — we have a very fast race car and a fast qualifying car. We just need to tune it and this is an exciting exercise.”
Tyre suppliers Pirelli will take their harder tyres, not greatly loved by Mercedes on the evidence so far this year, to Barcelona this weekend.
“I think it will be close - in fact more than very close,” added Wolff.
Ferrari and Mercedes may be the front-runners again, but Red Bull expect to be close in pursuit with a heavily-updated car while local hero Fernando Alonso has more modest hopes.