DRIVER’S LOYAL TO A VALT’...
Bottas is ready to take one for team
VALTTERI Bottas is going to stay loyal to Mercedes right to the end.
Despite being dumped by the team for next year, the Finn said he would ‘take one for the team’ if it asked him to let title contender Lewis Hamilton overtake in tomorrow’s Russian GP.
Bottas has a strong record in Russia, winning last year and taking his first F1 victory at the circuit in 2017. He was also fastest in both yesterday’s two practice sessions.
Bottas, who is leaving at the end of the season to join Alfa Romeo, has yet to win a race this season.
“We have discussed many things internally, including different scenarios,” he said.
“Every race is always different. There could be times that we need to play as a team and I need to take one for the team and how the situation is, yes, I would do it.
“We are here as a team and we need to make sure that we win both titles, not only the constructors’ but also drivers’, and at the moment Lewis has the greater chance for that.”
Adrift
Mercedes lead Red Bull by 18 points in the constructors’ championship.
“Of course we want to maximise the points where we can and now is a great opportunity,” said Bottas.
“We’re definitely here to try and win the race.”
Bottas is third overall in the driver standings but 80.5 points behind Hamilton, with the seven times world champion a further five adrift of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
Andy Friend’s men trailed by five points after 66 minutes but then butchered a five-metre lineout with an extra man.
And Cardiff made them pay when Connacht ended up with two men in the final and Dai Young’s men turned the screw to win by five tries to two.
Tackles
Connacht had only 30 per cent possession on the night and had to make 68 tackles to Cardiff’s 20 in the opening half,
But it took a converted try in the final play before the break for the home side to go in leading by 14-13.
An early Jack Carty penalty settled Connacht but it was Cardiff who got over for the opening try after ten minutes when full-back Hallam Amos, after initiating the move down the right himself, who finished after being set up several phases later by centre Uilisi Halaholo.