Valtteri Bottas did not make a single mistake all afternoon during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix but lady luck conspired to rob him of victory, with the chequered flag almost in sight, when a burst rear tyre while leading forced him to park the Mercedes.
It was gut-wrenching stuff for the Finnish driver who is needing a strong result to fend of suggestions that he may be replaced at the team come the end of the year.
After the race, Bottas told reporters, "I'm absolutely heartbroken. It hurts a lot. But this is racing; some days are good, some days are bad - and some days are very bad. A small piece of debris destroyed my entire weekend."
"We had a good race until the puncture. The car felt really good and we were fast. I thought I had everything under control on the Safety Car restart, but then suddenly my tyre exploded. I didn't see the debris and I couldn't feel it until the tyre blew."
"It was really close the last couple of races, so it's good that our team won today, but I'm obviously still very disappointed. I'll try again in two weeks." promised Bottas.
Latest News
Loading
