Last on the first lap, Valtteri Bottas snatches 2nd place on the line
Valtteri Bottas thought he had lost everything at the first corner. He made the most of the race conditions to climb back up to second place, thanks to an overtake on the finish line.
There are second places that taste like victory, and Valtteri Bottas’s in Baku is certainly one of them. Indeed, the Finnish driver’s race became complicated as early as the second turn when he made contact with his compatriot Kimi Räikkönen. His car didn’t come out unscathed, and he suffered a puncture. He painfully managed to bring his car back to the pits to change tires.
He was then last and a lap behind the lead driver, his teammate, Lewis Hamilton, which condemned him to hope for at least a safety car: « My main objective was to fight for the victory, but it was no longer possible after the first lap. I was last but kept my head down and gave everything in every corner. We didn’t manage to win but coming in second from where we were is a great feeling. »
The Mercedes driver was able to perfectly handle the different safety cars, which brought him back into the lead lap: « It was a crazy race, especially for me. I had a puncture on the first lap after contact with Kimi. I was a lap down but managed to pass the entire field under the safety car. The second safety car really helped me. From there, I climbed back up little by little. »
His manager, Toto Wolff, who has not yet made a decision regarding next season, could only be pleased that his driver managed to secure a podium while a team error cost Lewis Hamilton the victory: « This shows you should never give up. He did a sensational job while being a lap down. It was a perfect ending to steal second place on the line. »
Mercedes therefore achieves a great result in the championship as the team increases its lead to 16 points over Ferrari. Valtteri Bottas makes up some of his deficit to Lewis Hamilton, which could further complicate the rest of the season for the Mercedes management.
