Formula 1: Valtteri Bottas squashes rumours of having vendetta against George Russell: Alfa Romeo driver Valtteri Bottas has claimed he has no hard feelings against George Russell. Speaking on the driver who replaced him at Mercedes, Bottas squashed all rumours of a rift by saying ‘(George) is not my target’. Follow Formula 1 Updates on InsideSport.IN.
The Finnish driver, who finished in the seventh position in the Miami Grand Prix behind Russell, said after the race, “We’re chasing points and always just really trying to maximise every opportunity, every position you can make.”
Formula 1: Valtteri Bottas squashes rumours of having VENDETTA against George Russell, claims ‘he is not my TARGET’
“Obviously, it was a nice target for me in that race at Imola, because, from the middle to the end of the race, there wasn’t really much action around me so I was catching him a few tenths a lap, and that just kept me pushing. The target was more points, rather than a person,” added Bottas.
It was pretty evident that Bottas lost his seat at Mercedes due to the immense pressure from George Russell. Russell enjoyed his three-year stint at Williams where he drove an incompatible car and got the best out of it.
He even drove for Mercedes at the Sakhir Grand Prix in 2020 when Hamilton was tested positive for Covid-19. A minor fault in the pit stop for Russell ruined his chances of winning the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix.
Formula 1: Valtteri Bottas squashes rumours of having VENDETTA against George Russell, claims ‘he is not my TARGET’
Bottas and Russell crashed last year at the Imola Grand Prix which ended the race for both the drivers, thereby escalating tension between these two. However, Bottas claims he has gotten over that incident and holds no grudges.
The incident that brought out red flags in Imola 🚩#ImolaGP 🇮🇹 #F1 pic.twitter.com/Z18dCPXwOZ
— Formula 1 (@F1) April 18, 2021
Following crash, Russell reacted very angrily which was not required at that very moment. Meanwhile, the pressure from Russell on Bottas kept on rising and finally, the Brit signed for Mercedes. He has been a shining light for Silver Arrows this season as he has finished fifth or higher in the five races so far. On the other hand, Bottas himself has done a stellar job for Alfa Romeo.
Formula 1: Valtteri Bottas squashes rumours of having VENDETTA against George Russell, claims ‘he is not my TARGET’
