Buzzards continue to circle around Mercedes F1 driver Valtteri Bottas

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The rumor that just won’t die on the Formula 1 circuit has it that Valtteri Bottas is still at risk of losing his Mercedes seat, maybe even through 2021.

The Finnish rider had big problems both in Monaco, where he had to give up prematurely in 19th place due to a stuck wheel nut, and in Baku, where he finished 12th. Team boss Toto Wolff originally made Bottas responsible for the stuck wheel nut on the former road.

Bottas said in Baku that he was surprised to hear Wolff’s claim that he hadn’t properly set up his car for the pit crew.

“Valtteri was so unlucky again this year that you can hardly believe it. Take a look at Monaco,” said Wolff after admitting that Bottas was not to blame for the wheel nut problem. “We will definitely take that into account when choosing a driver for next year.”

Rather than blaming Bottas for Monaco, placing this race in the “bad luck” category seems to mean that Wolff is not looking for reasons to get rid of Bottas as many might want to believe.

“He was actually very precise at the stop. He hasn’t made a mistake in the whole story. That was our problem,” said Wolff. “I was wrong about that. I said he was a few inches off, but he was exactly right.”

However, some observers claim that Mercedes is now clearly lacking the driver line-up, especially since Red Bull’s Sergio Perez is now fully informed. After six races, Red Bull has a 26-point lead in the F1 constructors’ championship. Max Verstappen leads Mercedes-Lewis Hamilton by four points, while Perez is 22 points ahead of Bottas.

Formula 1 expert Ralf Schumacher told Sky Germany that Bottas does not play an effective support role for Hamilton if he is “not within striking distance” on the track.

“A good team-mate can force another team to wherever you want to be,” said the former F1 driver and younger brother of Michael Schumacher.

Schumacher said Bottas was “good in Monaco, but bad again in Baku”, which is “a huge problem for Mercedes in the World Championship fight. On the one hand, it doesn’t help the team standings, but on the other hand, it totally is.” as support for Hamilton is missing. “

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