(Motorsport-Total.com) – Valtteri Bottas’ Formula 1 comeback has not been a success so far. After the Finn bridged the 2025 season as a Mercedes reserve driver, he returned to the starting grid in 2026 with rookie Cadillac – but especially at the beginning, he also lagged behind his own expectations there.
Read more «Silly Season»: Does Mercedes even need Max Verstappen anymore?
“I think the start was a bit difficult,” admits Bottas and explains: “At the beginning of the year, we had some problems with the car construction and the consistency of the parts. Sometimes I was a bit puzzled as to why I lacked pace.”
The small highlights at Cadillac in the first half of the season were rather provided by teammate Sergio Perez, who also returned to the top class after a year off. In Monaco, for example, the Mexican managed to score points, even though he eventually lost P10 due to a subsequent penalty.
Nevertheless, many experts have so far seen Perez as the stronger Cadillac driver. According to Bottas, however, a turnaround has emerged in the last races before the summer break. They have “always found answers” to the numerous problems of the early season phase, he emphasizes.
“So that’s good, and in the last few races I have gained much more confidence in the car,” he reports and explains: “We are developing as a team, and of course as a driver you always try to improve. But finally, I feel like I am at the level I should be driving at.”
In fact, Bottas qualified ahead of Perez in the last three races before the summer break, after previously the internal qualifying duel between the two Cadillac drivers stood at 2:6 from his perspective. But now Bottas feels much more comfortable in the MAC-26.
The new regulations also caused Bottas problems
Regarding his problems at the start of the season, Bottas explains that he also first had to get used to the new regulations. This applies to all drivers, but in his opinion, Bottas was among those who had to adjust even more than others.
Read more Formula 1 Engine: Can McLaren Really Follow Red Bull’s Path?
“Actually more than I might have thought before the season started,” he admits and explains that especially on tracks like Spa, you really have to “think about the racing lines, the gears, and the approach to the corners: whether you attack the corner entry aggressively or focus on the corner exit.”
“That has changed a lot,” says the Finn, who has been racing in Formula 1 since 2013. “What used to be fast on some tracks is no longer fast today. So I definitely had to learn a lot anew, especially because of battery management,” he reports.
Mid-season reports: The best Formula 1 drivers at the summer break
When asked whether the “new” Formula 1 suits his natural driving style, Bottas answers unequivocally: “No.” He explains: “I had to adjust quite a bit. I feel that with my driving style I have often placed more value on the exits than on the entries so far.”
“But with these rules, that can actually be quite disadvantageous, because if you get on the throttle too early out of the corner, the battery runs out faster. So such things are quite different,” says the ten-time Grand Prix winner.
However, he has now adapted and, according to his own statement, has also learned a lot from the situation. In the second half of the season after the summer break, this should then be reflected more often in the results list.
Read more Red Bull: Max Verstappen names «top priority» for second half of the season