Valtteri Bottas has clarified his comments on the tax row involving Formula 1 drivers, insisting they have "no problem" paying taxes in countries where they race, but are "frustrated" with how Italian authorities have pursued them.
Italian tax officials are reportedly asking current and former F1 drivers for up to seven years' worth of bank statements and financial contracts over potential unpaid taxes.
Bottas clarifies remarks
Speaking to Sky Sports after Friday's second practice session, the Cadillac driver said his earlier comments were taken out of context. "It's one of those classic examples, where I explained about the situation and they only took just the best bits, to make it look really bad for me," he said.
"Honestly, we have no problem with paying taxes – as long as we know. We race in many countries and in more than 50 percent of the countries we go to, there's a certain percentage. And that's okay, as long as we know. But it's kind of frustrating the drivers that, in this case, they went back seven or eight years."
Bottas added: "We always got told we don't have to file anything for Italy, otherwise we would have. So that kind of came up with this thing, and obviously it's a substantial amount. I'm sure it would annoy anyone, that's just how it goes, but it would have been nice to know in advance."
Drivers weigh in on Imola finale
Earlier, Bottas had said on media day ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix of Malaysia that he was "not a big fan" of the idea of a season finale at Imola, if Formula One decides to replace one of the Qatar or Abu Dhabi Grands Prix with the Italian circuit near Bologna.
He told reporters: "I don't know if you've heard about the Italian taxes? No driver wants to really race in Italy because of recent events, what happened. Abu Dhabi, there's no tax. Right? I think everyone would like to race somewhere warmer. For now, what I've heard, we're still going to Qatar and Abu Dhabi."
His comments drew criticism from some who took them to mean he was keen to pay as little tax as possible on his seven-figure salary. Max Verstappen, the joint-highest paid driver alongside Lewis Hamilton, responded curtly, telling others to "just pay your taxes".
Weather concerns at Imola
Bottas' team-mate Sergio Perez said his issue with potentially racing in Italy in December is more about the weather than tax. "I guess it will be cold or can be cold but yeah, I mean it's hard. I don't think nobody knows at the moment what will happen," the Mexican said.
Haas driver Oliver Bearman added: "The tax complication is a bit less relevant to me than some of the others. But no, I think we should bring the snow chains and the hand warmers. Let's see how it goes, but it will definitely be cold if we're in Imola in December. I was living close by for a good few years and in winter it's definitely cold. You know about it."
