Bottas: Cadillac car 'not 100%' after difficult Canadian GP

Valtteri Bottas admitted his Cadillac was not "100%" at the Canadian Grand Prix, with unresolved setup and power unit problems leaving him lacking confidence and finishing last, four laps behind winner Kimi Antonelli.

Why it matters:

As Cadillac navigates its debut F1 season, Bottas' struggles highlight the steep learning curve and performance gap between the new team and established rivals. Sergio Perez has consistently outperformed Bottas, raising questions about the MAC-26's competitiveness and development pace.

The details:

• Bottas reported the car behaved differently in each session, with issues persisting into the race that could not be fixed.
• Qualifying gaps were pronounced: a 0.8-second deficit in sprint qualifying was partly due to a red flag, but the main qualifying gap was similar.
• The 36-year-old confirmed his power unit was also not running at full strength, compounding the handling woes.
• Perez comfortably beat Bottas throughout the weekend, continuing a trend from earlier rounds.

What's next:

Despite the setbacks, Bottas emphasized Cadillac's rapid development. "There are parts coming for pretty much each race," he said. The team is working equally on mechanical and aerodynamic performance, aiming to close the gap as the season progresses.