The Williams were alone in their world in China
Williams is unable to keep up with the pace of Mercedes and Ferrari but seems faster than the rest of the pack. Felipe Massa and Valtteri Bottas were therefore alone for the entire race, finishing 5th and 6th.
The two drivers had managed to get ahead of Kimi Räikkönen during qualifying. They hoped to keep the Finn behind them during the race, but their hopes didn’t last long as the Ferrari driver overtook them at the first corner. His compatriot regretted not being able to stay ahead: « I would have liked to keep Kimi behind for longer by being in front of him at the start, but he made a great move to regain his position. »
Felipe Massa also acknowledged that the team needs to work on this area for the upcoming races: « We had a good race today and I was able to get the maximum out of the car. The team worked very well but we just weren’t fast enough to catch up with the cars in front. I will work on my start because that’s the only thing that didn’t work for us. We scored the maximum possible points today. »
The message is clear for the engineers of the Grove team: they must work to at least catch up with the Ferraris, which had no trouble distancing themselves right from the first laps of the race. However, they can be satisfied that they are not under the direct threat of Lotus or Toro Rosso.
