Valtteri Bottas

There is something Nico Rosberg-esque in the way Bottas so honestly and studiously works on his weaknesses, refusing to cave to the pressure created by his own shortcomings being laid bare in the harsh spotlight that comes with racing at the very front of the F1 grid.

Where Bottas has deviated from the Rosberg path thus far is in happily maintaining the delicate equilibrium of harmony within Mercedes, from which world champion team-mate Lewis Hamilton clearly benefited in 2017, and for which the team is extremely grateful.

“It was difficult to find the right driver, but we got just the right guy into the team,” says team boss Toto Wolff. “The dynamic between Valtteri and Lewis made us develop the car in a very efficient way, and made us win the two championships, so not for one second do I regret where we are today.

“In the past I always believed a very fierce rivalry between team-mates would be good for the team, because they would be pushing each other. I think the lesson I learned is that it is probably not true – you need two team-mates that perform at a high level that keep pushing each other in the car, but the rivalry shouldn’t spill over into controversy outside of the car.

“The mindset and the relationship between the two made us stronger, gave an open and honest environment – the exchange with the engineers is very transparent and very clear. Our very fast, difficult car, we got it into a good place also because the two worked so well together.”