Bottas ‘Risked a Serious Accident’ Seeing Russell Passing Him: Villeneuve

The Valtteri Bottas and George Russell incident was the most hotly debated issue following the thrilling race at Imola. The latest to speak about the major collision was World Champion Jacques Villeneuve.

The former Williams driver is of the opinion that Russell was not in the wrong. In fact, just like another world champion, Villeneuve also found Wolff’s statements amusing.

Jacques’ statements echo what Russell said immediately after the race. The Williams driver believed that Bottas’ late movement was the cause of the accident and this wouldn’t have happened were it any other driver.

Basically, Russell suggested the fight for the Mercedes seat in 2022 played a part in Bottas’ actions. And this was also suggested by Villeneuve.

The 1997 World Champion said, (translated by Google) “That’s why I don’t quite understand Toto Wolff. Why does he blame the young Briton in the collision with Mercedes Junior Russell?

“Bottas knew exactly that his potential successor was about to overtake him and risked a serious accident with his short move to the right.”

Villeneuve suggests Valtteri Bottas is already losing the battle to George Russell

The Canadian believes Bottas is already feeling the pressure creeping up on him. He reckons the Finn is very much aware that this could be his last season in a Mercedes. However, he isn’t helping his case with his performances at the moment.

Villeneuve said, “That shows how tense Bottas is in the second race of the season. And it won’t get any better. Because he’s just too slow. If he wasn’t, he wouldn’t have had to defend his position so hard against a Williams.”

Bottas has already lost a lot of ground in the title fight. So, it’s unlikely he’ll be able to make up the gap to Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen.

Therefore, it may be all about damage control for the Finn. If he could nick a win or two this season, he could definitely help his cause.

Also Read- “That’s How It Goes”- Bottas Refutes George Russell’s Big Claim On Imola Crash

But with Russell progressing at a rapid pace along with age on his side, it appears that the Briton will eventually land a gig at Mercedes sooner rather than later.