© Sebastian Kawka for Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix ltd.
Valtteri Bottas says that the ‘evolution’ of Mercedes’ current car has not stopped, and he believes the team will be able to fight Red Bull “evenly in the future”.
Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff has said on numerous occasions that Mercedes has decided to stop developing upgrades for their current car in favour of developing their next year’s challenger under the new regulations.
However, Valtteri Bottas told Japanese Auto Sport Web that the W12 will still ‘evolve’.
“We are not resting, and although the body development department is shifting its main focus to next season’s machines, the evolution of the current car has not stopped at all,” the Finn said.
“I believe we can fight [Red Bull] evenly in the future. The motivation and unity of the staff on the track is getting stronger in the current situation.”
Unfortunately Bottas has not had an easy time this season. While his team-mate Lewis Hamilton is leading the championship standings, the Finn sits in P4, behind McLaren’s Lando Norris.
“It’s not a very pleasant situation. I’d like to say this clearly, but I never think that my personal performance has declined.
“It’s just the result of the relative fighting power of the machine package, and as I said, I believe it will improve in the future.
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“The deficit to Lando Norris is small, and I just want to move up one place.”
With 23 scheduled races, the 2021 season is expected to be the longest season in Formula 1 history. Bottas was asked if he expects this to play an important part in the championship battle.
“I totally agree. From March to December, 23 races will be held over 10 months. Moreover, there are several triple-headers in between.
“This will surely cause drivers and staff to accumulate fatigue. Of course, mistakes are more likely to occur.
“In terms of hardware, the load on the power unit is particularly large. The engine body, turbo, MGU-H, and MGU-K, we can only use three units a year, and other components only two units a year.
“It goes without saying that reliability is important, and how to prevent performance deterioration due to continued use is directly related to performance.
“At the end of the season when the title battle is over, that area will be a big key [to winning],” concluded the Finn.
