Valtteri Bottas has bemoaned "significant floor damage" that derailed his fight for points at the Spanish Grand Prix. The Finn finished only 19th for Alfa Romeo having struggled for pace throughout the 66-lap event at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. But the Hinwil-based outfit left Spain with points courtesy of a ninth-place finish for Zhou Guanyu, who was promoted after AlphaTauri driver Yuki Tsunoda was penalised for forcing the Chinese driver off-track. “For me, it’s pretty clear there was something not right with the car, because I was more than one second per lap off, just sliding around,” Bottas told media, including RacingNews365.com . “Whether it was a mechanical or aero issue I cannot say, because the balance was not, like, way off, but there was just a lack of overall grip. “So, we’ll see if there’s something damaged in the car.” But despite initially being unaware of the issues that led to his disappointing performance, Bottas revealed on twitter: "I knew something was not right today, and we found significant floor damage post-race which was costing aero performance. That meant no chance to fight for points."
Sunday 🇪🇸 I knew something was not right today, and we found significant floor damage post race which was costing aero performance. That meant no chance to fight for points today. Happy for my teammate @ZhouGuanyu24 to pick up couple of points for us and can’t wait to get back… pic.twitter.com/sBFPtcUgD7 — Valtteri Bottas (@ValtteriBottas) June 4, 2023
Whilst the cause of the damage was not highlighted, Bottas' off-track excursion in the early stages of qualifying was the likely blame. The 10-time grand prix winner was caught out in difficult drying conditions, with a stream of water running between Turns 10 and 12. Numerous other drivers also fell foul at the complex.
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