Bottas savours ideal return
No better way to start the season, says Mercedes No. 2
VALTTERI BOTTAS basked in the Spielberg sunshine after putting in a dominant performance to win the Austrian Grand Prix on Sunday. The Mercedes driver led from start to finish at the Red Bull Ring as he held off the challenge of teammate Lewis Hamilton.
Bottas had to contend with three separate safety car periods – all of which offered Hamilton the opportunity to close the gap on the Finn.
But he masterfully got the job done as he dealt the first blow in the battle to secure the World Drivers’ Championship.
Bottas admitted Hamilton – who ended up fourth after being handed a five-second penalty following a tangle with Red Bull’s Alex Albon – had made him work for his win.
But he managed to savour the victory, which will give his rivals plenty of food for thought as they prepare to race at the Red Bull Ring again this Sunday.
“I think there was definitely quite a bit of pressure all through the race and one safety car was okay but with the last safety car it was like ‘come on, again?’” Bottas said.
“There were so many chances for Lewis to get the lead if I made a small mistake. He was really quick today.
“But I managed to keep it together and really control the race from my side. No better way to start the season.
“We had to manage the car quite a lot so couldn’t really use all the kerbs and, at some point, I was slightly worried that everything would be okay,” Bottas said.
“But I’m glad both of the cars managed to finish and I think in the team standings we are leading so that’s a very good start.”
Hamilton’s clash with Albon opened the door for third-place finisher Charles Leclerc to move up to second and seal his first podium of the season.
It was Lando Norris who was most visibly made up by the result, though, with the McLaren ace securing the maiden podium of his F1 career.
“I’m speechless. There were a few points in the race where I thought I’d kind of fudged it up quite a bit,” Norris said after the race.
“I was up to fifth with two laps to go, Carlos (Perez) was obviously getting past me but I didn’t give up and I managed to get back past Perez and I ended up on the podium!
“It was a long race but yeah I kept going, kept trying to give it my all. A pretty cool last few laps, they told me to push as much as I can, as you can tell I’m a bit out of breath.” – Express Newspapers