Bottas: “It was the start of my life”

Valtteri Bottas celebrated at the Austrian GP his second success in F1 after the one won in Sochi (Russia) last April. The pilot Mercedes was out of reach of his opponents in the first part of the event after having achieved a magnificent takeoff, to the point of launching an investigation by the stewards who judged that the Finn had not anticipated his departure.

“I think it was the start of my life, recognizes Valtteri Bottas. I was really on it today. I had a feeling of déjà vu at the end of the race with what had happened in Russia because Hag came back hard on me. I had a lot of blisters on my tires in the last laps and I suffered from this problem from the 5th lap of my second stint. »

The departure of Valtteri Bottas still surprised Sebastian Vettel who took second place by finishing behind the wheels of the Mercedes.

“Valtteri had a great race. I actually thought he stole the start and it turns out that wasn't the case, says Sebastian Vettel. His responsiveness was supernatural. He said before that he was not human but Finnish. »

Daniel Ricciardo, 3rd on the podium of the Austrian GP, ​​was also surprised by the flight of Valtteri Bottas.

“I guess he got a little lucky and got going just as the lights turned green. I can’t believe his reaction time”, adds Daniel Ricciardo.

Discover the analysis of the Austrian Grand Prix carried out by our special correspondents in issue 2122 of AUTOhebdo, available from Monday evening in digital version on all platforms, and from Wednesday on newsstands.