Valtteri Bottas believes Alfa Romeo has made positive strides in race pace despite a tough second stint at the US Grand Prix. While the team faced challenges with tyre degradation, Bottas highlighted some encouraging moments during the race.

Race Pace Improvements

“But, yeah, honestly the second stint just became too long for us in the end, the tyres didn’t hold on. We tried, but… it seems like we’ve made a step in the race pace, but we still need more,” Bottas commented after the race.

Asked if he felt confident about the team’s progress ahead of the Mexico City Grand Prix, Bottas added: “Yeah, [in] parts of the race we could really race, which hasn’t been the case for quite some time, so I think we made a step in the race pace.

Looking Ahead to Mexico

“Mexico is a very different track, which I like very much as well. Let’s see what we can do there,” Bottas concluded, expressing optimism for the upcoming race.

Zhou Struggles in Austin

Meanwhile, teammate Zhou Guanyu experienced a spin following the safety car restart and ultimately finished 19th, the last car on the track after Lewis Hamilton’s early retirement.