Valtteri Bottas theory emerges after Cadillac ‘got a bit confused’ in Azerbaijan GP DNF
Valtteri Bottas regained an F1 seat with Cadillac for the 2026 season
Valtteri Bottas says Cadillac “needs to have a look at what happened” after an “odd” incident led to his retirement at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.
Bottas believes the car’s systems may have “got a bit confused” after he locked up and ran wide at the first corner shortly before his crash at Turn 15.
Valtteri Bottas fears Cadillac systems ‘got a bit confused’ at Azerbaijan GP
Bottas crashed out in the closing stages of Saturday’s race in Baku, inadvertently setting up a chase to the finish line between George Russell’s Mercedes and Max Verstappen’s Red Bull.
The Cadillac driver found himself under investigation after the race for remaining within the vicinity of his stricken car rather than retreating to a safe place, with Bottas taking time to examine the rear brakes of his MAC-26.
The FIA stewards opted to take no further action against Bottas, who vowed to move to an area of safety more promptly in the future.
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Speaking to PlanetF1.com and other media outlets after the race, Bottas aired his theory that the Cadillac’s systems were confused after his excursion at Turn 1.
He believes the extra distance he covered to rejoin the circuit may have resulted in his car behaving unusually later in the lap.
It is not the first time a driver has reported problems with the car’s systems becoming confused under the new F1 2026 rules, with Russell memorably left with a lack of power on the opening lap at the Belgian Grand Prix in July.
He said: “First of all, on the same lap I had a lockup into Turn 1, I went wide.
“Then I think the systems got a bit confused because of the extra distance.
“I had a huge super clip into [Turn] 15 and then, when I hit the brakes, only the front brakes worked.
“It was almost like I wasn’t harvesting anymore with the rears, so something [got] a bit confused there.
“We need to have a look at what happened, but it was an odd one because it felt like I lost the rear brakes.
“It felt like I lost the rear harvesting.”
Asked how the race was prior to his exit, he laughed: “Long one!
“First, honestly, no pace at all. I could only fight with Fernando. For sure, we lost some time there, but otherwise just pretty far off.
“So lots of things to look into from this weekend.”
Cadillac has struggled with brake problems throughout its debut season, with Baku marking the seventh time Bottas has failed to reach the chequered flag in F1 2026.
Asked if lifting and coasting was required to manage the issue in Azerbaijan, he replied: “Yes, that is true. We have to do some lift and coast.
“Nothing as extreme as before, but then in the end we could drop the lift and coast at the end, so I think it’s just more cautious.”
On whether his brake problems contributed to his sizeable deficit to teammate Sergio Perez, who finished 15th, Bottas said: “No, I don’t think so. I think there’s something else. We’ll have a look.”
Bottas went on to explain that Cadillac’s performance was slightly flattered in Baku by the circuit’s lack of high-speed corners, which has emerged as a weakness of the MAC-26 chassis.
He expects this weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix – held at the former Malaysian Grand Prix venue in Sepang – to prove a tougher challenge for the American team.
Bottas said: “There’s not many high-speed corners [in Baku] so it doesn’t highlight our weaknesses as much.
“But let’s see in Malaysia, but at least on some tracks we’ve been closer.
“We’ve been better in the mix and that’s good to see.
“[Malaysia] could be a tricky one. We are overheating the tyres quite a bit when it’s hot, we are still not great in high-speed corners, so it could be a tough one.
“But still, curious to see how it is for us. It’s a nice track to be going back to and for sure it’s going to be hot. That’s one thing for sure.
“Not much [overtaking is expected in Malaysia]. I think it’s quite tricky over there.”
Additional reporting by Thomas Maher
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