Mercedes new man Valtteri Bottas has revealed that he has had to tweak his driving style to accommodate the nuances of the new era Formula 1 cars which have much more downforce and grip generated by revised aerodynamics and bigger, fatter tyres.
Bottas told ESPN, "I've definitively needed to adapt some things on my driving style, take slightly different lines and use slightly different driving techniques."
"It's not just because it's a different car with more grip. Mechanically it behaves a bit differently, which takes a bit of time if you want to get absolutely everything out of the car."
And indeed the Finn did get the maximum out of his Mercedes as he lapped around the Circuit de Catalunya, during the recent Formula 1 preseason testing third fastest, quicker than his illustrious teammate Lewis Hamilton withe whom he shared test duties with during the eight days in Barcelona
Bottas admitted, "I feel I've learned massively, I feel I can extract more and more about the car, but there's still more to come, for sure."
He will be hunting his first grand prix victory from the moment he lines up on the grid for the season opener in Melbourne on 26 March, where he will also be making his debut as a Silver Arrows driver.
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