Breaking news
Formula 1
Bottas: No changes to black overalls despite Spain complaints
Valtteri Bottas says there are no planned changes to Mercedes' Formula 1 race suits for the Belgian Grand Prix despite struggling to stay cool last time out in Spain.
Luke Smith Alex Kalinauckas
Edited: Aug 27, 2020, 7:05 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
Mercedes switched from its traditional white overalls to a black design as part of a pre-season rebrand that saw its car change to a black livery in an anti-racism message.
Bottas reported during the Spanish Grand Prix that the black overalls were "f**king hot" as track temperatures neared 50ºC through the race.
The Finn said after the race that he had lost 3kg through the grand prix, and that the white suits would have been better at reflecting the sun and keeping heat out.
The race wear drivers are required to use in F1 have also been made thicker for the 2020 season, adding to the cooling struggles.
Asked ahead of this weekend's Belgian Grand Prix at Spa if Mercedes had made any changes to the race suits, Bottas said that while no alterations were planned, he did not expect conditions to get so hot again.
"It was pretty hot in the car," Bottas said. "In theory, as I said after the race, [I don't know] if it's the new material or is it the colour?
"I don't know, but it felt really hot. I believe the overalls are the same and I believe that was maybe the hottest race we've had this year are going to have this year. So it should be OK."
Read Also:
- Hamilton: Only drivers pushing Pirelli for better F1 tyres
- F1 teams to trial new low-downforce wings at Spa
The weather forecast for Spa currently shows a high of 20ºC for the next three days, with rain forecast on both Saturday and Sunday.
Bottas heads into this weekend trailing Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton by 43 points at the top of the drivers' standings, having not won a race since the season-opener in Austria.
Asked if this felt like a pivotal point in the season and his fight against Hamilton for the title, Bottas replied: "Of course.
"If I want to fight for the championship, it means I need to gain points against Lewis, and even Max [Verstappen] is ahead of me in the points, so I need to gain on him.
"I really take it race by race, but of course nothing is over until it's over, so that's going to be the approach."
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Gasly still finding Hubert's death "hard to accept"
Next article Why TV gives old F1 laps an illusion of speed
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Luke Smith
1998 Belgian GP: When the Schumachers went to war
Formula 1
Formula 1
1998 Belgian GP: When the Schumachers went to war
The race that transformed perceptions of Red Bull
Formula 1
Formula 1
The race that transformed perceptions of Red Bull
Hamilton in the process of selecting Brad Pitt’s co-star for F1 movie
Formula 1
Formula 1
Hamilton in the process of selecting Brad Pitt’s co-star for F1 movie
More from
Valtteri Bottas
Colton Herta qualifies for F1 superlicence as Valtteri Bottas remains bullish on 2027 seat
Formula 1
Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
22 h
Colton Herta qualifies for F1 superlicence as Valtteri Bottas remains bullish on 2027 seat
Cadillac to investigate high-speed Mexico GP failure that led to angry Valtteri Bottas reaction
Formula 1
Formula 1
Mexican GP
Cadillac to investigate high-speed Mexico GP failure that led to angry Valtteri Bottas reaction
You Ask The Questions: Valtteri Bottas
Formula 1
Canadian GP
You Ask The Questions: Valtteri Bottas
More from
Mercedes
F1 Brazil GP long runs: Kimi Antonelli dominates as Ferrari endures a nightmare Friday
Formula 1
Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
2 h
F1 Brazil GP long runs: Kimi Antonelli dominates as Ferrari endures a nightmare Friday
Why Toto Wolff sees Ferrari clash as "déjà vu" – and why escalation may be necessary
Formula 1
Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
18 h
Why Toto Wolff sees Ferrari clash as "déjà vu" – and why escalation may be necessary
Latest news
Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen hit with F1 grid penalties for Brazilian GP
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
6 min
Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen hit with F1 grid penalties for Brazilian GP
Haas justifies picking Rafael Camara over Ryo Hirakawa for F1 Brazilian GP
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
30 min
Haas justifies picking Rafael Camara over Ryo Hirakawa for F1 Brazilian GP
F1 retains Brazilian GP until 2035 with fresh Sao Paulo deal
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
40 min
F1 retains Brazilian GP until 2035 with fresh Sao Paulo deal
LIVE: F1 Brazilian GP updates - Kimi Antonelli leads FP3, Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton among drivers with grid penalties
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
51 min
LIVE: F1 Brazilian GP updates - Kimi Antonelli leads FP3, Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton among drivers with grid penalties
Feature
Discover prime content
How F1’s rules got to be so complex
Formula 1
By Pat Symonds
How F1’s rules got to be so complex
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe