We’ve grown accustomed to seeing a Mercedes leading the pack in Formula 1. We’re just used to the driver in that Silver Arrow being Lewis Hamilton, not Valtteri Bottas. The Finnish driver took his maiden F1 win at the 2017 Russian Grand Prix ahead of the Ferrari duo of Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen. It was Bottas’ 81st F1 race start. ”Took quite a while, more than 80 races,” said Bottas after the victory. ”Worth the wait.”
Bottas qualified in third, but was quickly able to pass Raikkonen in second at the start of the race, and leader Vettel a little later in the lap on the long straight. The Mercedes driver kept his lead after a safety car was deployed following a collision between Romain Grosjean and Jolyon Palmer. Vettel nearly closed the gap to Bottas on the last lap, finishing just 0.6 seconds behind in second.
Lewis Hamilton finished in fourth behind Raikkonen. The British driver complained throughout the race of an overheating engine, finishing 36 seconds behind Bottas but still well ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in fifth. Force India’s Sergio Perez and Esteban Ocon crossed the line in sixth and seventh.
Vettel is now the points leader with 86. Hamilton, who won this season’s Chinese Grand Prix, is in second with 73. Bottas sits in third with 63 points. Mercedes holds on to its lead in the Constructors’ Championship standings.
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