Finnish rookie Valtteri Bottas delivered joy and shock in equal measures on Saturday when he stunned the Formula One paddock and delighted his Williams team by qualifying in third place for Sunday’s Canadian Grand Prix.
The 23-year-old from Nastola, in only his seventh GP, felt he had achieved a feat by progressing to the top ten for the first time. But in treacherous wet and slippery conditions, he outpaced many far more experienced drivers from the leading teams to thrill the Williams team, who are without a point this season.
“This means a lot,” said Bottas. “So much. It’s way more up in the grid than we could have imagined.
“The first six races have been so difficult, so this will be a nice boost for the team. We got everything just right today.”
His team boss Williams deputy team principal Claire Williams, who has had a tough time since a promotion to her current role earlier this year, beamed with pleasure.
She said: “Valtteri did such a brilliant job. I can’t tell you how excited everyone is. It’s only P3, but it’s so exiting considering the season we have had.
“It means a lot to everyone at Williams. Valtteri is so consistent, those lap times, it’s continuous. Even in the wet, he held it together, he’s fantastic.”
Bottas’ best finish was 11th in the Malaysian Grand Prix in March. Meanwhile, Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel completed his hat-trick of poles in Canada on Saturday.
***
Pakistan olympic body likely to be suspended by IOC
Karachi, June 9: Pakistan may face suspension from the International Olympic Committee like neighbours India due to a conflict between the national Olympic Association and a newly formed interim-committee, backed by the government.
The Pakistan Sports Board has appointed an interim committee to run the POA affairs but Lt General (retd) Arif Hasan, who has been heading the POA as president for seven years, claims that the committee is illegal and not recognised by the IOC.
The PSB, a government body, has said that it had appointed the interim committee after the Supreme Court approved the new sports policy for all sports bodies and under it no official could be elected for a third term.
Ironically, the ruling came after Hasan was elected as POA president for a third term last December. The interim committee, headed by Asif Bajwa, announced it was banning all those bodies that attended the ‘illegal’ POA meetings for five years. — PTI