Valtteri Bottas believes he was on track for a P6 finish in the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix before a cooling issues ruined his efforts.
The Alfa Romeo driver had launched his race from eighth on the grid and then gained a position during his first stint on the medium tyre when he slotted himself between the dueling Alpine duo of Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon.
He remained among the top-ten thereafter and reckons he could have targeted P6 but for a cooling issue that forced Alfa to retire the Finn's car on lap 36 of 50.
"It’s a pity to retire from what had been a really good race until that moment, especially as we were looking good for P6 at least," commented Bottas
"The engine temperatures kept rising, we need to investigate what caused that, but we had to pull the car out as we didn’t want to lose the engine.
"It’s how racing goes, we now need to make sure we solve whatever issue it was and move on."
©AlfaRomeo
Bottas' opening performance with Alfa in Bahrain had delivered an impressive sixth-place finish. But the Finn's weekend in Jeddah confirmed that the Swiss outfit and its new driver are a force to be reckoned with in the upper tier of F1's mid-field.
"Looking at the positives, the car is really good," Bottas added. "We made another step forward from the previous race, even in the starts.
"We were doing a good job and enjoying some close battles: now let’s make sure we get back to scoring in Australia."
Bottas' talent and experience are undeniably helping Alfa Romeo upgrade its performance this season.
But Xevi Pujolar, Alfa's head of trackside engineering, says the former Mercedes driver is also bringing a "positive mood" to the Hinwil squad.
"His performance, I think is impressive," said the Spaniard. "But on top of that, what is helping on top of the performance is the positive mood he’s giving to the team and to the other driver.
"He’s fast and he’s bringing the team with him. And I think that’s the key.
"It’s not only about going fast on track, but then also to make sure that the team is following you, here, at the track and at the factory and with the other driver."
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