Valtteri Bottas endured a nightmare start to the Sao Paulo Grand Prix at Interlagos as an extraordinary technical failure abruptly ended his race before the opening lap even commenced.
The drama unfolded on the grid after the Finnish driver completed his reconnaissance laps. As the Cadillac squad attempted a last-minute tyre change, mechanics quickly realized they were facing a major mechanical hurdle on the right-rear corner of the car.
An inspection revealed that a cross-threaded wheel nut had jammed the assembly completely, making it impossible to remove the tyre in time. The team had no choice but to wheel the car back into the garage, where mechanics reportedly spent six grueling hours just to get the stuck wheel off.
"It's sad that we were unable to start the race today," Bottas expressed. "Before the lap to the grid, we tried to change the tire but couldn't get the right rear wheel nut off. We're not sure what caused it but we will learn from it and hopefully not face a similar issue again."
Cadillac team principal Marcin Budkowski admitted the setback was a frustrating conclusion to a demanding triple-header stretch for the entire garage crew.
"It was a challenging day, starting with a cross-threaded wheel nut on Valtteri’s car on the laps to the grid, which unfortunately forced us to retire the car before the start," Budkowski stated. "We’ll investigate the issue to ensure we don’t suffer a repeat."
Remarkably, this bizarre technical gremlin echoes a similar disaster from Bottas' past, mirroring the infamous wheel-nut failure that ruined his race at the Monaco Grand Prix during his time with Mercedes.
With the American outfit actively assessing their driver lineup and weighing future options—including potential evaluations involving Colton Herta—this latest setback adds further pressure to an already crucial campaign.
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