Valtteri Bottas: The team expected more

After the Belgian Grand Prix, which takes place this weekend in Spa, Formula 1 will go on its traditional summer break. Before the stage, Sauber drivers Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhou said they were expecting a more productive first half of the season.

Valtteri Bottas: “Spa is a legendary circuit and I have always enjoyed driving there in the past. It is one of those places where the cars and drivers are really tested and the many corners are exciting. One of them is Pouhon.

It seems like it all started yesterday in Bahrain, and today we are already summarizing the results of the first half of the season. There is no doubt that we wanted to do better in the first thirteen races and the team is working hard to turn the situation around.

Our form in Budapest last weekend was generally better than the previous few rounds and although the race was disappointing, the new products helped and should help in Spa – we need to continue in the chosen direction of development.

The improvements are gradual, but every little bit helps us. We have to keep working with full dedication to take another step forward – both this weekend in Belgium and in the remaining races of the season.”

Guanyu Zhou: “The double series of stages ends in Belgium, after which Formula 1 takes a summer break.

The first half of the season, which we had high expectations for, proved to be difficult for the team. However, the team is not giving up and will not give up until the end of the season. The new features we installed in Valtteri’s car in Budapest were a step forward, although we still have work to do to unlock their full potential. We can do this by working together as a team, as we always do.

We need to stay focused and keep working on improving our pace this weekend and in the second half of the season, to try to close the gap to our closest rivals and get back in the fight for the points.”