Valtteri Bottas brings up “really bad lap ones” as he looks back on 2022 season’s “weak points”

Valterri Bottas has the worst statistical first-lap record of any driver last season.

Valtteri Bottas brings up “really bad lap ones” as he looks back on 2022 season’s “weak points”

Valtteri Bottas

Valtteri Bottas performed well after joining Alfa Romeo in 2022, but because of his poor start-handling skills, he regularly lost positions on the opening lap of races. Bottas had the lowest statistical first-lap record of any driver last season. His net loss of positions was 39, almost twice as many as his teammate Zhou Guanyu, whose score is also not that great. Due to both drivers negatively performing, Alfa Romeo’s car could be counted as a reason for Bottas’s performance. Especially considering issues with clutch vibrations that became apparent at the beginning of the year.

The vehicle might have had an apparent role, but Bottas’ pattern can be looked into too. The Finnish driver has had trouble gaining ground in the first lap of races. Bottas has only had a net positive gain in places on the first lap of a race once in his ten seasons in Formula 1. When he was still at Williams in 2014, he only managed to advance by one spot overall.

“But there are weak points also for myself. Lap ones, from my side, have been really bad. From my side, especially when I’m outside the top 10 there’s a little bit of adaptation needed.” Bottas says in a recent interview with The Race. The shift he had from a car belonging to the top of the grid to a car that has to struggle a lot to reach there is also something to be considered.

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Valtteri Bottas may need to work on his mindset at the start of races if he wants to overcome a recurring deficiency in his Formula 1 performance. As a result, he might need to modify the way he responds to pressure. And figure out how to perform well under stress. It’s commendable of him to admit that he can do better and to be willing to put in the effort to do so. In the end, improving his mindset could enable Bottas to perform better on the track.

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Valtteri Bottas asserts that the FIA “wants to control” the drivers

Valtteri Bottas

Valtteri Bottas, the driver for Alfa Romeo, recently expressed his opinions on the new F1 rule change. It prohibits drivers from making any political remarks during race weekends. Bottas clarified that despite not liking politics, he still believes it is vital to talk about it.  He also believes that the FIA is restricting drivers’ freedom of speech with this new norm.

Obviously, Bottas does not like how the FIA is trying to control the drivers. He said: “I don’t understand why they want to control us. I think we should have the right to talk about what we want. That’s how I see it, but we’ll see what happens.” His former teammate, Lewis Hamilton, is the one who is most likely to be affected by this ban in the paddock. As such, the Briton was asked to fight this policy by a prisoner in Bahrain, Ali Al-Hajee.

Bottas as a driver has shown growth throughout his career. Politics, in the opinion of Bottas, is a component of current society. Many drivers have voiced their concerns. He believes Formula One has done a fantastic job of focusing on some of these issues and should continue to do so.

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