Valtteri Bottas put together an impressive performance for Sauber in China’s Sprint Qualifying. The Finn made it into SQ3 with his C44, putting himself within touching distance of points tomorrow. Bottas and his teammate Zhou Guanyu have received plenty of praise for today’s efforts. However, the 10-time race winner explained heading into this weekend that his performances in 2024 have generally gone under the radar.
On two occasions this season, Bottas was firmly in contention for points. The first was in Australia when a disastrous pit stop threw away his strong start. Without this stop, the Sauber driver could have very realistically fought with the Haas duo for points.
A few weeks later, in Japan, a 4.0 second stop compromised him once again. Although this stop wasn’t as catastrophic, he lost out crucial positions in the hotly contested midfield fight. Although Sauber’s pit-stop blunders have received coverage, this has not necessarily translated into praise for Bottas’ efforts.
VALTTERI BOTTAS DISCUSSES HIS PERCEPTION
This is hardly a new phenomenon in F1. Consistently, drivers fighting at the front are received more positively. Before this weekend kicked off in Shanghai, Bottas spoke candidly about his perception:
“That’s how motorsports works. Sometimes it’s more difficult to show what you can do,” he told RACER.
“I think the people that really look into the details and try to see how each driver is performing, they will see.
“But I would say that for the outside world, it’s tricky. When you’re not scoring, you’re almost hidden, in a way.
“I feel like I’ve had a couple of good qualifying sessions and good races so far. But they have always been compromised…
“All I can do is try and perform the best I can, so hopefully, the right people will see that.”
Valtteri Bottas, Kick Sauber F1 Team C44 ; 2024 Australian Grand Prix, Formula One World Championship
Bottas is among the many drivers embroiled in the F1 driver market. As he works to secure a contract for 2025, his machinery could be a limiting factor.
Of course, as he outlined above, it is plausible that key figures in Formula 1 will notice his efforts. After all, it seems logical that professionals in the sport are paying attention to the stories that don’t necessarily make the headlines.
However, it cannot be said that F1 teams are exempt from making oversights. This is especially true for established drivers like Bottas, who are not necessarily as ‘exciting’ as up-and-coming youngsters. In any case, today’s result in China will definitely help his case.
With Audi understood to be interested in Sainz and Hulkenberg, it is essential that the 34-year-old can effectively advertise his services. With vacancies elsewhere, time will tell which teams (should Sauber choose to replace him) can offer him a lifeline.
