Valtteri Bottas blamed a “massive bee” for his difficult start at the Russian Grand Prix as the Mercedes driver missed the braking zone at Turn 2.

Bottas challenged his team-mate and polesitter Lewis Hamilton off the line at the Sochi Autodrom, but while trying to pass around the outside Bottas put wheels off the track and Hamilton stayed ahead.

As it turned out that wasn’t much of an issue for the Finn after Hamilton was given a pair of five-second time penalties for separate illegal practice starts, so after his first stop where he served all 10 seconds, Hamilton was down in P11 and out of the equation.