Bottas lashes out at his team again: ''Obviously someone who is very emotional''

F1 News

22 June 2021 at 09:28
Last update 22 June 2021 at 10:49
  • GPblog.com

Valtteri Bottas complained during the race about the chosen strategy of his team. According to Ralf Schumacher, however, the Finn has to be careful that his attitude does not cause him to lose his seat with Mercedes as early as 2021.

Bottas told his team before Max Verstappen's second pit stop, that he would like to do an extra pit stop. Plan B was the Finn's aim. His team didn't comply, which cost Bottas dearly. He fell outside the podium and blamed his team for that. The question is whether he is not shooting himself in the foot?

Mistakes by Bottas

''The issue of Valtteri Bottas will also continue to play a role at Mercedes. Valtteri obviously had a good weekend. But when it comes down to it, when it's necessary, he again makes mistakes and slows down. He also seems to be wearing out the tyres faster than Hamilton. It's just not good enough, especially when you're doing a World Cup against such strong opponents as Red Bull,'' Schumacher said in his column for Sky Germany.

''We have seen it: Perez was very important in making the strategy work for Verstappen. So Bottas has to be there and force Verstappen to sometimes choose strategies that are not so good. He almost succeeded when he was very close to Verstappen at the beginning of the race.''

Bottas very emotional

''If Bottas' performance remains as consistent as it was this weekend or in Monaco, then a driver change will not be a factor this season. But should Bottas drop out again, it would definitely be worth considering'', the former Formula One driver warns Lewis Hamilton's teammate. His angry reaction will not exactly have improved his position within the team either.

''His critical radio message to the team about strategy certainly won't put him in a better position at Mercedes. Valtteri is clearly someone who is very emotional. Personally, I wouldn't have dared something like that after my performance so far this year. But he will already know why. He will probably know that he is gone anyway and try to recommend himself to another team. He wants to make it clear that a different strategy would have been better. I can't explain it to myself in any other way,'' Schumacher concludes.