Bottas admits: 'Hamilton and his team shared their setup with me'

After a difficult start to the weekend, Valtteri Bottas set a strong time on Saturday that was good for a second starting position. The Finn admitted after the session that he had help from the other side of the Mercedes garage, specifically in finding the optimum set-up for the W12 on the Red Bull Ring.

"We worked closely with Lewis to find the optimal set-up and we definitely got advice from his side of the garage this weekend, "Bottas acknowledged, quoted by Motorsport Total. "I definitely lacked pace on Friday and I was confused about which direction to go. But as a team, we found this."

However, the Finn is keen to stress that sharing setups is "nothing new." He explains, "That's not unusual. We are currently discovering a lot about the car and it's easy to get confused about which direction to go."

Good lap

Bottas concludes by stating that, at the end of the day, he can look back with satisfaction with his Q3 lap, although a grid penalty meant he lost his second starting position. "Max and Red Bull were faster today. But it was a good lap and I'm happy about that," Bottas said.