The replacement of the heat engine on Valtteri Bottas’ Mercedes is not currently planned. The Finn retired from the Qatar GP held on Sunday at the Losail track due to a fuel draft problem. On Valtteri’s steering wheel computer more than once a warning signal appeared that indicated something was wrong with the engine as it should have.
Daniel Bialy of F1talks in a tweet showed an image of Valtteri’s steering wheel with the red alert: in fact the problem appeared already at the beginning of the race and was repeatedly felt during the GP, partly conditioning the comeback. towards the third place of the Nordic rider after the bad start.
On lap 48 of the 57 scheduled in Qatar, Brackley’s team decided to permanently stop the W12, while it seemed that the stop had been propitiated by the effects of the previous puncture.
Valtteri, in fact, had been kept on track by Mercedes strategists with the intention of lengthening the stint with medium tires because with the pace he was showing it was not utopian to think of bringing him to the podium area: it is a pity that on lap 33 Bottas was forced to return to the pits with the left front tire sagging: the Finn accused the problem at Turn 7 and had to travel a good part of the lap with the tire on the ground, also damaging the front wing.
The pit stop, therefore, was more laborious than usual: in addition to the tire change, the wing had to be replaced so the stop cost 11 ”4 before Valtteri returned to the track in 14th place, outside the points area.
The problem with the engine is easily repaired by replacing the fuel pump which is not part of the approved parts of the endothermic 6-cylinder. The Star team has no intention of homologating the seventh unit of the season, since Mercedes’ goal is to bring Bottas to the front row alongside Lewis Hamilton in qualifying for the Saudi Arabian GP scheduled for next seventh in Jeddah.
Valtteri, according to rumors filtering from Brackley, will have engine 6 which will have a very strong mapping, similar to the one that allowed Hamilton to sign pole in Brazil and win the GP of San Paolo.
The world champion team is confident in the help that Bottas will be able to give in the flying lap: the hope is to put two black arrows in front of Max Verstappen. Building a brace in Jeddah would mean taking the lead in Abu Dhabi, breaking the balance of the two title contenders who could get there on equal points, with the Dutchman leading by one more victory (9 to 8).
Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes
Photo by: Jerry Andre / Motorsport Images
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