Valtteri Bottas has been forced to clarify his position on Italy’s tax rules after suggesting Formula 1 drivers would rather avoid an end-of-season trip to Imola – a remark that quickly attracted criticism and prompted an unusually defensive explanation from the Cadillac veteran.
With Qatar and Abu Dhabi currently scheduled to close out the 2026 campaign, the ongoing conflict in the Middle East has put those races under scrutiny.
Should either or both events be abandoned, Imola has been identified as a potential contingency venue, potentially placing Italy at the beginning and end of the season.
For Bottas, however, that scenario comes with an unwelcome financial complication.
Bottas sparks the tax debate
The controversy is rooted in reports that Italy’s Guardia di Finanza has contacted F1 drivers over tax returns relating to income earned while competing in the country.
Speaking on Thursday at Sepang, Bottas appeared to make his position fairly clear, pointing specifically to the prospect of ending the season in Italy.
"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,” the Cadillac driver told reporters.
“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.”
That blunt assessment quickly created a problem of its own, with Bottas subsequently accused of objecting to paying tax rather than the manner in which the Italian tax issue had emerged.
The Finn was keen to put that interpretation straight.
‘We have no problem with paying taxes’
Speaking to Sky Sports F1 after Friday practice, Bottas argued that his original comments had been stripped of their context and insisted that the drivers' objection was not to taxation itself.
"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,” Bottas 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 our eight years.
"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.”
Bottas' explanation nevertheless landed against a particularly dry response from Max Verstappen, who reduced the dispute to a far simpler proposition.
“There is no tax issue. You just have to pay tax,” the Dutchman said.
For now, F1's preferred finale remains Qatar and Abu Dhabi. But if Imola is ultimately called upon to rescue the calendar, the championship could come with an additional bill for its travelling stars.
Read also: F1 sets final deadline for Qatar and Abu Dhabi decision
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