Valtteri Bottas says Mercedes need everything to be “perfect” to challenge Ferrari at the Italian Grand Prix.
The Finn was fourth fastest on a tricky Friday in Monza due to the weather as the top two teams set their best times either side of a short rain shower.
As expected the straight-line speed of the Ferrari is proving tough to match, but with a little help, Bottas does think any outcome is possible in qualifying.
“I think we have an opportunity but we definitely need to get a perfect setup from the package we have and a perfect tow too,” he said post-session.
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Reflecting on his Friday, Bottas continued: “It was a little bit messy in terms of the run plan we had, to actually make it happen, but it was the same for everyone.
“There were a couple of corners where it was raining at times and that made it a little bit more difficult to get more detailed data on the tyres and the car behaviour.
“But we managed to get a bit of a feel, the car didn’t feel too bad, I didn’t have a very good tow on my quickest lap, but otherwise it felt good and it was pretty positive on the long runs, at the end with the higher fuel load.
“I had a good feeling and good pace, so that’s positive for Sunday.”
“We knew coming here they [Ferrari] were going to be strong, but for sure it didn’t look any worse than Spa for us,” he suggested.
“For sure we have a good chance this weekend and if qualifying is for sure going to be important, but the main thing is Sunday and how the race pace is going to be.
“At least, with the limited running we had, it felt quite good. That’s promising but, for sure, there are still lots of things to be found from today before we’ve headed to qualifying and the race.”
