Sunday: Williams hits a wall with Mercedes, Bottas claims his first podium in F1
The pace of the Mercedes was too high for Williams. But the Grove team achieved an excellent result with a podium finish for Valtteri Bottas.
Valtteri Bottas (No. 77) – 3rd
A great result for the new “Flying Finn” as it is his first podium. Joy is evident in his words: « It’s hard to explain what I’m feeling right now. It was the best champagne I’ve ever tasted. It’s in these moments that you can see all the hard work done by the team. I made a pit stop that allowed me to join the battle, and the race changed because of it, so well done to the guys for that. I had to do a good lap beforehand, so I found myself ahead of Felipe and from there I managed my pace well with the [Mercedes] cars in front. »
Felipe Massa (No. 19) – 4th
Despite a relatively disappointing place starting from pole position, the Brazilian congratulates his teammate on his podium: « I’m very happy for Valtteri, he did a great job. » Before adding: « We fought well with the Mercedes but it was clear that we couldn’t win. I had to manage my tires throughout the race and fought in traffic. It’s disappointing to stop first and come out 4th but that’s racing. »
Thanks to this result, Williams moves ahead of McLaren in the Constructors’ Championship, just 2 points behind Force India.
