Valtteri Bottas has called for the Sauber Formula 1 team to launch a complete “review” of the Japanese Grand Prix as another points finish evaded the Swiss outfit.
Bottas had climbed up two positions at the start and held 11th on the second standing restart before being the first driver into the pits at the end of the seventh lap.
Sauber elected to pit again on Lap 22 when Bottas got stuck behind Kevin Magnussen’s Haas, but another slow stop saw him plummet behind three of his direct rivals.
Bottas admitted that being caught behind Magnussen and the prolonged pit stop were factors that led to another disappointing result that didn’t reflect Sauber’s pace.
“Honestly, it was a positive day in terms of the overall pace, we did stop quite early on the second stop and actually at the same time as a lot of the others,” he reviewed.
“Unfortunately we ended up behind all the cars that were racing, so, basically, for the rest of the race I was stuck behind Kevin.
“He had really, really good top speed, so I couldn’t find a way around him. I think the pace was better than what the result is.
“It was difficult today. That second stop had us over, there was a bit of an issue there, and I ended up behind all the competition.
“It’s not an easy track to overtake, especially as Haas seemed really fast on the straights today.”
The ex-Mercedes driver also questioned the timing of his second stop, which led to an eventual overcut from multiple competitors as he trailed home 14th in the end.
“It was a really positive race for us until the second stop. I’m questioning a bit the timing of that stop, with everybody else, as we know that we are still not at 100% with the pit stops, so, unfortunately, an issue happened, and we were, again, at the back of the train,” Bottas bemoaned.
Bottas is convinced that without a recurrence of Sauber’s pit stop woes he could have mounted a strong challenge to RB’s Yuki Tsunoda for the final points position.
“I think we should have been with Yuki without the issue in the second pit stop. It’s a shame,” he added.
“I think other options would have been to extend the middle sting to find some free air, because we had the pace today. We need to review everything, for sure.”
Asked about his feelings departing Suzuka without a point in the bag, the Sauber driver admitted he was “disappointed” to not have a reward from the first four rounds.
However, Bottas remains optimistic that Sauber’s C44 car has been quicker than the results show and believes the team’s recent upgrades have proved a step forward.
“It’s definitively been a step forward, and for sure it’s going to help us in China as well. It’s also a track with a lot of high-speed content,” he explained.
“I think, pace-wise, we should have been around tenth today, which is positive and gives us encouragement going into China.”
