Hamilton defends Mercedes teammate: "It's not like I'm a slowpoke"

It's not easy to have one of the best drivers in Formula 1 as a teammate. Alexander Albon can talk about that, but so can Valtteri Bottas. The Finn gets a lot of criticism, even though he regularly takes pole positions and wins races. After the Russian Grand Prix Bottas gave his famous quote after the race: "To whom it may concern..."

Still, the Finn claims that he is not really touched by the criticism he gets over himself. "I don't really think about how people think about me. I think that's the wrong area to focus on. Sure, I get criticism sometimes, we all do and that's normal in life. There are always people who want to take you down, but you have to convert that into positive energy and use it as power. I just focus on driving, to try to get pole positions, to get victories. That's my job and that's what I like about it," said the Mercedes driver at the FIA press conference after qualifying.

Fast enough to beat Hamilton

Bottas also gets support from Lewis Hamilton, who doesn't think the criticism of his teammate is justified at all. "I don't think I have much to say about that. I mean, he has just achieved pole position! He is ahead of me. I have more pole positions than anyone here, so it's not like I'm a slowpoke. He's doing a great job and his results speak for themselves. He speaks for himself on the track and that's so great about Valtteri. I don't think there are many people who can do what he does if I'm honest. I have a lot of respect for him," concludes the Brit.