Mercedes spotted fatal Bottas debris… just too late

The Mercedes crew only spotted the piece of debris that caused Valtteri Bottas' demise from the Azerbaijan Grand Prix when it was too late.

The Finn was leading the race after the final restart, with just two laps to go, when his Mercedes struck a heavy piece of carbon fibre, inflicting an immediate puncture to Bottas' right rear tyre.

The Silver Arrows team had been attentive to the presence of debris on the track related to several incidents which had taken place and had subsequently warned both Lewis Hamilton and Bottas to be on the lookout.

One scrap of carbon went undetected however, and when it was identified by the Mercedes pitwall, it was simply too late.

"We didn't give him warning, because we didn't see it," said trackside engineer Andrew Shovlin in a Mercedes video.

"The first time we saw it was just as he came over those bumps. That was why he was also blind-sighted.

• Hamilton unhappy with Vettel's safety car antics in Baku

"You could see him heading towards it, but it was half a second or a second or so, and it was not enough time for us to get on the radio and tell him that there was debris on the track.

"If we had seen it we would have warned him, as we were doing a lot of the other laps with the other accidents.

"We were trying to guide them as to the best bit of track to avoid it. Unfortunately on this occasion it was all too late.

"It was a real shame for Valtteri, he'd driven brilliantly all weekend, a super composed race."

Inspired by the high probability of incidents taking place, Mercedes had left Bottas out as late as possible aware that with each passing lap, the chances of a Safety Car deployment grew stronger.

"Absoluitely, that was what we were hoping for," added Shovlin. "It's Baku, and there's a pretty good chance of getting a safety car.

"When Sebastian came in he leaves this window so that he's sufficiently far behind us so that if we stop under a safety car or a VSC, and you get the shorter pit loss, we could actually take the lead of the race.

"They're hoping that there isn't one, but it's one of those strategies that you play for.

"It's actually quite difficult to leave the race and control it, because you are protecting against people undercutting you, but also this issue with the safety car, and you can't do both. So that's where it does create opportunities for whoever's in P2."

Mercedes technical director James Allison was among those in the Mercedes camp with mixed emotions Sunday evening.

"After three races where we had opportunities to win that we did not take, it’s great to have victory come our way this afternoon in Baku," he said.

"I am as pleased for Lewis as I am sad for Valtteri after the race.

"Both drivers delivered fine performances but it was a cruel blow to have the prospect of a one-two finish dangled in front of us and then whisked away at the last when Valtteri drove over some debris following the Safety Car period.

"That’s two races running where he has deserved a much better outcome and I am confident it will come for him in the future."

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