It is in the moments of pressure that you learn about the character of individuals.
Some thrive on the intensity of the spotlight.
Others shirk away from it.
That had always been the question mark over Valtteri Bottas when it was announced he would be the man to replace retiring world champion Nico Rosberg at Mercedes-GP for the 2017 season.
The Finn had built a good reputation in his previous four seasons at Williams, taking nine podiums with a team that fell away in competitiveness after a strong 2014.
Sure, Bottas had led races during his time at Williams, but there had never been any real expectation he could convert it into a triumph, given the dominance of Mercedes.
Stepping up to join the constructors’ champions was a whole new ball game.
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He was expected to win races and challenge for the title against a triple world champion in the shape of Lewis Hamilton in the other car.
Add in the fact that his deal with Mercedes is only for the 2017 season, and the heat was truly on the Finn to demonstrate he has what it takes to be a serious player in Formula One.
The omens had initially not been good because as well as struggling to match the Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel, he was also well beaten on speed by Hamilton in both Australia and China.
In Bahrain he took pole, which was a step in the right direction, but problems with tyre settings hurt his speed in the race and he was twice asked to move out of the way for Hamilton, always an ominous sign for team status, no matter how much of a positive spin Mercedes and Hamilton tried to put on it.
Bottas needed a big performance on the back of Bahrain to prove he was not in Mercedes simply to be a No 2 to Hamilton and help Mercedes win the constructors’ title again, and he found one yesterday.
It was not just the fact he claimed the first win of his career that stood out. But the manner of how he achieved it that also really registered.
He was hounded by Vettel in the closing laps as they dealt with lapped traffic, but kept his cool and ensured that the Ferrari, despite being on fresher tyres, never got close enough to have a real go at overtaking him.
It was almost a perfect performance from the Finn. He got a great start from third place and was able to go around the outside of Pole-sitter Vettel into Turn 1, and he never looked back from there.
As Vettel would concede post-race it was Bottas’s driving in the opening laps that gave him the victory, when the Finn had opened a lead of five seconds by Lap 20.
That cushion meant that he and Mercedes could cover off whatever strategic risks that Ferrari attempted when the pit stops began.
Vettel went for a longer first stint, and while it did help him be faster in the final stages, he could do nothing about Bottas.
The one mistake that came from Bottas was a tyre lock-up that led to him losing a couple of seconds as he ran wide at Turn 13, but he regrouped and did not put a wheel wrong after.
Of how he had mentally dealt with having Vettel right behind him, he said in the post-race news conference: “It was OK. The main thing was the lapped cars, trying to get past those.
“With these new cars, we lose more downforce when two seconds, three seconds behind, so it was tricky to get close and pass them without losing time.
“I was not happy on a few occasions and I had one lock-up with 10-15 laps to go, which hurt the pace a bit, but other than that it was OK. I did ask for radio silence from the pitfall for me to get on it and get focused.”
In winning the race Bottas also put another marker across Hamilton, with the Briton having to settle for fourth place behind the second Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen.
Bottas not only beat Hamilton for the first time over a race distance, he absolutely hammered him, finishing 36 seconds ahead of him.
Hamilton, 13 points adrift of Vettel in the drivers’ standings and 10 ahead of Bottas, said he had endured a tough weekend.
“Ultimately, I was not quick enough, could not put the car where I was comfortable, and then in the race it was overheating so I just had to settle for fourth,” he said.
“Once I’d got around the first couple of laps I was basically stuck where I was.”
The challenge for Bottas is now to do this consistently.
Having beaten Hamilton and the Ferraris once, the objective is now to repeat the feat, starting in Barcelona at the Spanish Grand Prix on May 14.
Bottas understandably was relishing his moment of triumph yesterday, but he did look to the future as he said: “It’s a little bit surreal the first win and hopefully the first of many.
“It was definitely one of my best races ever, so it’s a good feeling and I am happy.”
gcaygill@thenational.ae
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