Abu Dhabi double Mercedes pair finish the season in style
Understudy holds off champion for victory Jordan claims fans were ‘mugged’ by poor race
Still waters run deep with Valtteri Bottas. While any flicker of sentiment has tended to be sublimated beneath that icy Finnish facade, his satisfaction at finally beating Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton in a straight fight was self-evident under the arc lights of Yas Marina.
“I couldn’t be happier,” he said, his stern features softening into a smile. “Yes, Finns don’t show emotion, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have it.”
This was just the third victory of Bottas’s career and, by some distance, the most vital. While Hamilton glided into his winter break with barely a care in the world, his fourth championship long since secured, the Silver Arrows’ No 2 driver needed to keep proving that he was worthy of their faith.
Here in this garish, floodlit corner of desert, he seized his own chance to shine. Bottas has only signed a one-year contract exten- sion at Mercedes, but there was a poise about his lights-to-flag win here to suggest that he could yet keep Hamilton honest next season.
“It can be difficult for a new guy to acclimatise, to get used to different people, but Valtteri has done an exceptional job,” said Hamilton, looking genuinely thrilled about his understudy’s success.
Contrast this smooth dynamic with the air of cordite 12 months ago, when a thunderous Hamilton lost the title to Nico Rosberg and found himself accused of causing “anarchy” by Toto Wolff, team principal, for disobeying orders. For now, there is a sense, however fragile, of sweetness and light that is enabling both drivers to thrive.
Bottas was asked by a Scandinavian reporter if his win represented an early birthday gift for Finland, due to celebrate 100 years of independence next month. “Sure,” he shrugged, nonplussed. “I don’t have any other presents, so let it be.”
He was almost faultless for the year’s last hurrah, guilty of just one lock-up all race to deny Hamilton any chance of making a pass. It is a shame that the Abu Dhabi circuit designers, who had the space and cash to create anything they liked, came up with a contrived Disneyesque layout aptly described by Mark Webber as “Mickey Mouse”.
With overtaking painfully scarce, the huge fireworks display that heralded the chequered flag was hardly matched by pyrotechnics on track. “It’s one of the worst tracks for that,” acknowledged Hamilton, who with seven laps to go was within a couple of car lengths of Bottas, only to find no way past. “I was never going to overtake unless he made a massive mistake.”
Hamilton bristled when asked why he seems to switch off once the title is resolved, but the facts were indisputable: in 2015 and 2017, he won well before the final race, but failed to grasp another win or pole for the rest of the year. “I’ve been doing other things, celebrating a lot,” he conceded, eventually. “I wouldn’t say I’m at 100 per cent.”
Not all observers were impressed by the latest display of crushing Mercedes dominance. Eddie Jordan did not temper his words about how poor a race he felt it was. “I feel sorry for the fans who have come here and spent fortunes,” the Irishman said. “They’ve been mugged.”
A measure of the procession was that Sebastian Vettel, for all his desperation to cut the gap, finished more than 19 seconds adrift. For four years, the car in front has been a Mercedes. Unless Ferrari can engineer another step change before Melbourne next March, 2018 looks like being little different.
The Italians’ proud record of six consecutive constructors’ titles, achieved from 1999 to 2004, must be considered under threat.
When the most engrossing battle is between Lance Stroll and Romain Grosjean for 13th place, it is a fair sign that half the paddock is already thinking about doing their Christmas shopping. But for Bottas and a few others, there were pressing scores to settle.
For example, Jerome Stoll, president of Renault, held his head in his hands in despair when Carlos Sainz veered off track, after the Spaniard’s left front tyre wobbled loose. So lavish is the F1 prize pool that the difference of a single place in the constructors’ contest can be worth £10 million.
When Nico Hulkenberg came sixth to ensure Renault ended the year ahead of Toro Rosso, the relief in the garage was palpable. “No worries, guys, that’s what I’m here for,” the German said, coolly.
It was an equally stressful affair for Red Bull, as Daniel Ricciardo, having qualified fourth, limped out with a hydraulic malfunction. The scowl on the face of Christian Horner spoke volumes. After a run of nine podiums in 2017, the Australian has failed to finish three of the last four grands prix.
Through it all, Bottas remained serene. After his frustration in Brazil a fortnight earlier, when he neglected to turn a pole into a win, he made sure he did not fluff his lines. “I can’t say yet that I know how to win the title, but it’s an important win for me,” he said.
Should Hamilton be worried? We will find out soon enough, but as he slipped away into the night, the champion appeared blissfully at ease.