Valtteri Bottas: “It’s crucial we can have a trouble-free weekend”

Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN’s Valtteri Bottas hopes to take advantage of any opportunities that come his way at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, as he looks to continue his run of solid results– having earned points in every race this season but one, where he had retired. 

Bottas emphasized the importance of a “trouble-free weekend” in order to compete at the sharp end of the midfield. He also noted that the team has seen issues come up on Fridays in past weekends, and by working to solve these problems, they would be better able to fully optimize their cars and set themselves up for success in Baku.

“Baku is a place with both good and bad memories for me, so I definitely hope to add some more of the pleasant kind this weekend. It’s crucial we can have a trouble-free weekend: we have been having some good results despite some Friday issues so far, and if we were to fix these, we could really see the full potential of our package. We know we can fight towards the front when we do it and it has to be the aim here as well.

“This is a track that can produce some chaotic races so we will need to be ready to make the most of any opportunity. It could be a lot of fun on Sunday.”

“The potential we have is obvious” – Zhou Guanyu

Team-mate Zhou Guanyu also aims for a clean effort in Baku, where he can continue to improve and show the potential of the team to keep moving forward competitively. 

“I’m really looking forward to this weekend. Baku is an enjoyable track that offers a lot of opportunities and I’m aiming for a clean, good weekend in which we can really show what we can do as a team.”

Zhou has not finished in the points since his first time out in Bahrain, but he is confident that the results he is striving for are on the horizon. He said that by making the most of practice and qualifying, he will be able to best fight for a successful result in Baku.

“The potential we have is obvious and I can see I’m progressing more and more each weekend: now it’s a matter of putting everything together and getting the result we deserve. If we have a clean Friday and a good qualifying, we will be in the position to bring home a good result in the race.”