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Bottas critical of Wolff's on-board radio: 'Was at the wrong time'

Bottas critical of Wolff's on-board radio: 'Was at the wrong time'

27-11-2021 09:24 Last update: 10:36
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GPblog.com

Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez are fully at the service of their teammates Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen as they battle for the 2021 title. Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff often guides the number two during the race, but in Qatar things went slightly wrong according to the Finn.

Bad timing from Wolff

Wolff often supports Bottas' on the on-board radio during the race. The Austrian hopes to give his driver just that little push to make things difficult for Verstappen and prevent the Dutchman from taking more points. In Qatar, it was back to business after a lacklustre start by the Finn; Wolff could be heard over Bottas' channel: "Come on Valtteri, get those cars."

It even seemed to work. Bottas came back steadily and had his eyes set on a podium. It was to no avail, though, as it was his accelerated pace that contributed to the wear on his tyres. A puncture made his chances of a podium disappear. After the race, Bottas criticized Wolff's on-board radio to Express.com: "The timing was not good."

Bottas doesn't blame Wolff for the puncture, but means that the actual moment of the on-board radio came as a surprise at the wrong time. Bottas: "It's normal. He lives in the moment. It was only at the moment I was overtaking. I was surprised by the message. The timing was maybe not right, but not a problem."