Bottas has been driving in Formula 1 since 2013 with Williams. For a while he had trouble sharing his true self with people, but when he changed teams to Alfa Romeo, things changed for him. He started to be more active on social media and also created projects outside of racing like selling gin and starting up coffee businesses. In addition to that, he gave an interview to GP Racing magazine which previously would have been hard for him to do.
At the Australian Grand Prix, Bottas talked to the press wearing a tank top and flipflops and having a mullet. He says that it’s easier for him to show who he really is. He added that if he was just starting out with Formula One (F1), he wouldn’t have come to the paddock with a tank top and flipflops.
When you’re a rookie, you learn how to act. As time passes, you realise it’s better not to take things so seriously. That’s just part of being in the sport. At some point, you accept that the situation cannot be changed and “deal with it.”
Valtteri Bottas from Alfa Romeo C43 is pictured here. The photo was taken by Simon Galloway for F1Flow Images.
Bottas believes that in the last 10 years, Formula 1 has become more like a “big business” and it’s harder for pilots still in their teens to act naturally on-track. Daniel Ricciardo and Lando Norris are some of very few exceptions. It is complicated for young racers to make it into F1 these days and because of this we don’t get to see their true personalities on-track.
When you get to know drivers off the track, you’ll see their true personalities. But when doing interviews and working with sponsors, things are strictly professional. The last decade we saw some drivers like Daniel Ricciardo who showed a lot of personality – that’s awesome but also makes sense since it involves important business with lots of money involved.
Valtteri Bottas said that it wouldn’t have been possible for him to do a photoshoot with GP Racing earlier in his career. The magazine interview happened at the January’s Race of Champions event in Sweden and Valtteri had a lot of fun talking and joking with some of the most important drivers in motorsport.
Plus, he made sure those present had even more fun by bringing crates of his special Alcoholic drink – Oath Gin – to entertain them.
When someone asked about what people said about the cover piece, Valtteri Bottas said he hadn’t looked into the public opinion, but was happy with how it turned out. He added that he did the interview when he visited Sweden for the Race of Champions, and trusted that they had made a good job.
Domenicali recently said that new Formula 1 fans do not mind if Red Bull remain the leaders in the race.
