Brundle: Bottas needs to 'find that guy with wild eyes'

40

Former F1 driver Martin Brundle says Valtteri Bottas needs to revive the inner flame that allowed him to defeat Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton earlier this season.

Bottas and Hamilton shared wins in the first four races of the 2019 season. But since Baku, the Finn has been no match for the reigning world champion who conquered in France his fourth consecutive win of the year.

"Bottas needs to urgently find that guy with wild eyes who I interviewed as the winner at the end of the Australian Grand Prix, and invite him back into the cockpit," Brundle wrote in his post-race Sky Sports column.

"Lewis has the clear upper hand and he hasn't even reached the summer break yet, after which he tends to get really fast."

Wolff: Change of style needed for Bottas to challenge Hamilton

Brundle admitted that Hamilton is in a league of his own, as is his W10 Silver Arrow as his pace at the end of Sunday's race attested.

"One of the more remarkable yet most annoying facts was that on lap 53, Lewis Hamilton on twenty-nine lap old tyres delivered a time of 1:32.764," added the Sky F1 commentator.

"On the same lap, on fresh tyres, Sebastian Vettel determinedly stole the fastest lap world championship point with a 1.32.740.

"Hamilton and Mercedes are just playing with the opposition like a cat with a ball of wool.

©Mercedes

"I'm not saying it's easy, because F1 is not, but they have reserves of speed yet and we are not seeing-flat out racing.

"Which makes it even more painful that Ferrari took many of their updated aero parts off the car because they weren't better.

"They didn't close the gap to a cruising Mercedes around Paul Ricard.

"Vettel and Charles Leclerc drove fine races, the latter almost catching Valtteri Bottas on the final lap after the Virtual Safety Car was deployed due to an errant bollard. Which rather sums up the race."

Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.