Valtteri Bottas believes Alfa Romeo Sauber needs to deliver a “flawless” weekend at the Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix if it hopes to score more world championship points.
The Finn was seventh in Miami last time out, his fourth top 10 finish from five races thus far in 2022.
That result follows a strong performance in Imola where some suggest Bottas had the pace to stand on the podium had events unfolded differently.
“We had a really strong showing in Miami and, with every good result, comes the confidence to push for more,” he said.
“We head to Barcelona knowing we can be in the fight for the front of the midfield again.
“We’re in the midst of an interesting battle with our direct rivals every weekend and I don’t expect this one to be any different.
“It is crucial we have a flawless weekend, here more than ever: Barcelona is a track that holds no secrets for any team, so there won’t be any silver bullet to find to be ahead of the others, it will be about execution and doing our homework.
“For sure, we arrive in Barcelona in a much happier state than when we left after winter testing, which is proof of how well this team has bounced back after the difficulties we encountered in February.
“I want to repay all this great work with a good result.”
The Miami Grand Prix result was, according to team principal Frederic Vasseur, a shot in the arm for a team that has made strong progress since 2021.
“We head to Barcelona with the aim of extending our positive streak at the start of the season,” he said.
“I feel we are now in a situation in which our objectives will be similar for each round going forward, and not too different from what we have had so far this season – both cars in Q2, one in Q3 and points on Sunday.
“This doesn’t mean we are underestimating the challenge ahead of us in Catalonia or anywhere else.
“The midfield is going to be a close, intense and thrilling fight throughout the season, and it will be a fight decided by small margins in each race.
“We are also very curious about where the updates each team is bringing are going to put everyone,” he added.
“Our team had to face a massive challenge to respond to the pressure under which the incidents of recent events have put us, but our workforce have come back with hard work and determination, and we will have plenty to evaluate this weekend.
“This is a race which can bring a bit of a shake-up to the order we’ve seen so far, and I am confident our team has done the work needed to be among the ones who have done the better job.”
Free Practice 1 in Spain gets underway at 22:00 AEST on Friday.
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