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Reuters

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Reuters

Valtteri Bottas has done it again! The Mercedes driver is slowly growing to be a man of the people with his frank personality. Bottas once again took a dig at his team with a meme on his Instagram story regarding his sixth PU change this season. As Mercedes trusted another engine change onto their driver, Bottas had to take a penalty again; clearly, it was comical to the driver as well.

Terrell Owens holding Dude Wipes XL

In a hilarious post, Bottas implied opening an engine shop with all the PUs he has collected in the last month. Maybe he can collaborate with his teammate, who can open a tire factory with his pole position trophies.

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Although Mercedes looked strong on Friday’s practice sessions, the team decided Bottas would need yet another engine upgrade. To look back, the Finn took his first penalty in Monza, where he was robbed of a pole position start. He also took his fifth ICE in Sochi, which put him at the back of the grid; now, at Austin, Bottas started in P9 after yet another unit.

Read more: US Grand Prix vs Sunday Night Football: Did F1 Trounce NFL On Jam-Packed Weekend?

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That’s three engine changes in four races. It’s no wonder Bottas can make a profit with his engine store!

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Valtteri Bottas’ timid Sunday in Austin

Despite the upgrades, it wasn’t much of a race for Bottas on Sunday. The Finn started P9 and crossed the checkered flag in sixth. The only notable moments from his race included the struggle with Yuki Tsunoda before passing him and the last lap overtake on Carlos Sainz.

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Regardless of the two places made, it was a rather disappointing race for Bottas. Despite having the stronger car, the driver saw the rears of the AlphaTauri and Ferrari for longer than he would have liked. Additionally, he missed out on the crucial championship battle taking place in the front.

Bottas rightly described his race as uneventful. “It was a pretty uneventful race for me, we tried the best we could, but it wasn’t easy to fight through the field. Making progress was difficult and we knew it would be, because of the temperatures here and the characteristics of the track.”

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However, going into the weekend, Bottas was the last winner of the US GP. Perhaps the midfield cars weren’t as competitive two years ago as they are now; posing a challenge to the Mercedes.

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Nonetheless, an important five races are ahead of the Finn. Red Bull has taken a big leap on the constructors’ board and is closing in on Mercedes. Now, Bottas will have to be elbows out and eyes ahead for the next couple of races for Mercedes to win the title.

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Shreya Sanjeev

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Shreya Sanjeev is an F1 author at EssentiallySports. Having attained a journalism degree from St Xavier's College, she finds comfort in the sound of her keyboard while typing and excitement in the sound of F1 cars speeding on a track. A street circuit and Daniel Ricciardo fan through and through, Shreya claims the 2018 Monaco GP to be one of her favorite races of all time. When she's not watching F1 races, she can be found watching NBA matches and rooting for the Golden State Warriors.

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