Ferrari ended the first day of free practice for the Russian Grand Prix half a second off the top time in FP2, but Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas believes that the Reds have not yet unleashed everything they have in their arsenal.
After finishing the afternoon session in Sochi second fastest, reporters asked Bottas about the large gap to Ferrari, to which he replied, “I don’t believe it is real. I think it is going to be very close tomorrow."
“Normally Ferrari have been very strong in the straight lines but today they didn’t seem to run full power or something, so we will see tomorrow.”
"It seemed like they weren't really showing everything they have, so they will probably be stronger tomorrow. I think it's going to be very close, so we'll have to keep pushing."
In FP2, Bottas' teammate Lewis Hamilton set the pace with a time two tenths faster than what the Finn could manage.
Nevertheless, he remained upbeat, “I think it was a good day for us at least on paper we seem to be quick but it is only Friday and we saw Ferrari not really giving everything they have with their car.”
Bottas lies fourth in the championship standings, three points behind Ferrari driver Kimi Raikkonen while Mercedes lead Ferrari by 37 points in the constructors' standings with six rounds remaining.
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