Zhou: Our job is to fight for places in the top ten

Alfa Romeo goes abroad with good expectations, as at the previous round in Qatar both team drivers finished in the top ten, allowing it to stay ahead of Haas in the Constructors’ Championship and close the gap on Williams. This of course only increases the desire of Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhou to earn points again.

The first race of the series of three straight stages will be held at Austin Motor Speedway, and this is the capital of Texas, one of the most ‘cowboy’ states in America, so the team promised that everyone in the paddock will see Valtteri and Guanyu in traditional wide-brimmed “Stetsons” also called “hats” (10 gallons) and leather cowboy boots.

However, it is unlikely that this will affect the speed, unlike the following technical innovations that Alfa Romeo will present this weekend.

Valtteri Bottas: “It’s great that we got back into the top ten in Qatar and earned points again, especially considering what kind of race it was. But for our entire team it was an important achievement – both for the Alfa Romeo racing team and for everyone working at the base in Hinwil.

We are ready to fight until the very last round and try to improve our position in both championship events.

I really enjoy visiting the United States, I fly here often throughout the year and look forward to the weekend ahead. It is always interesting and fun to participate in Austin. I love this track and in 2019 I won pole at this track.

Moreover, we once again have double opportunities to earn points, because in the USA, just like in Qatar, a sprint is on the weekend program. We know what exactly worked in the previous phase and we understand how to act to get started right away with maximum efficiency.

We also know that our car has potential, and the new products we introduced last month are having a positive effect. We will receive further updates this weekend and I am confident we can maintain the momentum and earn points again.”

Guanyu Zhou: “The points we earned in Qatar gave us confidence and obviously only fueled our hunger to build on this success. Our goal is to finish seventh in the Constructors’ Championship, which is just a few points away, and we are ready to fight for that.

The race in Qatar was really successful for us, we used the right tactics, worked well with the tires and executed the pit stops well. We were able to show a good result exactly when it mattered most, and now we have to focus on that again.

I enjoyed racing in Austin last year and am already looking forward to the weekend at COTA. Everything is big in Texas, including this Grand Prix on a grand scale: the enthusiasm of the fans in the stands is incomparable. Our job is to put on a good show for them and compete for places in the top ten.”