Valtteri Bottas: “A race compromised at the start. »

Just like the other drivers of the first three rows qualified on odd positions, the Finn Valtteri Bottas made a very average start, dropping him to eighth place. “My race today was compromised after the start, admits Bottas at a press conference. My clutch slipped a lot. Besides, it wasn't the first time this happened to me, so it's something we'll really have to work on during the winter. This compromised my strategy as I was stuck behind several cars. »

Felipe Massa's teammate nevertheless wanted to highlight the excellent season of the team's Whole grained. “Compared to last season, it’s just incredible to see our improvement. By putting both our cars on the podium it really shows how much we have improved over the season, which is vital, because next year is going to be really tough, everyone is going to improve and we are aiming to be stronger and to fight for victories. »

With his sixth podium of the season, Valtteri Bottas secured fourth place in the Drivers' Championship, ahead of his two world champion rivals Sebastian Vettel et Fernando Alonso.

Discover the analysis of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix carried out by our special correspondents in issue 1988 of AUTOhebdo, available from tomorrow evening in digital version, and from Wednesday on newsstands.