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Valtteri Bottas Cheekily Responds After Almost Defying Mercedes F1 Team Orders at Dutch GP

Published 09/05/2021, 1:28 PM EDT

Valtteri Bottas finished the Dutch Grand Prix in P3 at Zandvoort. He was never really on the pace with his teammate Lewis Hamilton and race winner Max Verstappen. But he made things quite interesting by going for the fastest lap at the end.

Bottas pitted at lap 70 of 72 to go for the fastest lap, but on his hot run, he was told to abort the effort. Mercedes team chief strategist James Vowles came on team radio to abort the fastest lap so Hamilton could get the fastest lap and the extra point.

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Valtteri Bottas “was playing around”

Bottas played the team game and sacrificed his race to help his teammate Hamilton as much as possible in his fight with Verstappen. In the post-race interview, Bottas mentioned that he did not go for the fastest lap.

“To be honest, there was quite a big gap behind, so for safety reasons, it was a good thing to stop. I think I could have made it to the end much faster than by stopping, but in the end, it was the same. I thought initially we would stop for the fastest lap but then also Lewis had a gap so Lewis stopped,” said Bottas.

Bottas' response was asked about setting that fastest lap after being told to slow down by the team 👇
"I was just playing around" 👀#F1 #DutchGP
— Motorsport.com (@Motorsport) September 5, 2021

“I was pushing on the first lap in sectors one and two like flat out. And then they started asking me to slow down at the end of the lap. I was playing around, really. Obviously, Lewis needs that one extra point more than me.

“He’s fighting for the world championship for drivers. As a team, we’re trying to get maximum points. That’s how it is. I knew Lewis was going to stop as well. That information I had. I knew that with a decent amount of lifting in the last sector, he would get it. No drama,” said Bottas.

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I just think wanted to make sure it was not happening: Toto Wolff

Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff also stated that Bottas did not defy team orders in his quest to get the fastest lap. He mentioned that he came on the team radio to re-emphasize his point to Valtteri.

“That was a bit cheeky but understandable. Valtteri is always on the receiving end because this championship is so tight. He lifted off massively in the last sector, and it was clear that Lewis would do the quickest lap and Valtteri knew about it.

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“In the end, Lewis in his fight for the drivers’ championship got the point, and it’s all good,” said Wolff.

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Devang Chauhan is an F1 author at EssentiallySports. Having completed his graduation in Journalism and Mass Communication, he has a keen eye for writing engaging and detailed articles on F1. Previously a writer for Sports Social's 'Chase Your Sport' Magazine, Devang has been an ardent follower of the sport for over a decade and has attended two editions of the Indian Grand Prix.

Valtteri Bottas Cheekily Responds After Almost Defying Mercedes F1 Team Orders at Dutch GP

Valtteri Bottas “was playing around”

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I just think wanted to make sure it was not happening: Toto Wolff