Out of Seat Formula 1 Winner Valtteri Bottas Gets in Trouble With the Police and Fans Can’t Get Enough of the Drama

While Valtteri Bottas’ Formula One future might be hanging in the balance, there is no doubt he’s one of the most talented drivers in the sport. Over the years, he’s managed to win 10 Grand Prix, 20 pole positions, 19 fastest laps, and 67 podiums. In fact, he is the driver with the most points earned without a championship (1,797). However, over the last three years since his exit from Mercedes, he’s failed to bag any wins and hasn’t shown the same racing prowess he had from 2019 to 2021.

Despite that, Bottas being Bottas is known and loved for his fun, quirky, and entertaining personality on and off the track. Who can forget his comeback statement in 2019, when in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix he beat Lewis Hamilton and on the radio said, “To whom it may concern, (expletive) you.” Well, this is the kind of personality that has made him a fan favorite. And Bottas never shies from comedy, especially on social media. Recently, he was pulled over while driving, and his reaction to it was a classic Bottas!

The time when Valtteri Bottas got pulled over…

Kick Sauber has not retained Bottas after he did not have an ideal season with the team this year. He remained winless and couldn’t score a single point. His last race at Abu Dhabi was the perfect example of how his season has been. Bottas was pumped for what could be his final race in F1 and qualified 9th, a chance for him to score some farewell points for his team. But in the very first lap, he made contact with Sergio Perez, ending his race in a DNF.

While that’s not the season end the veteran expected, Valtteri Bottas doesn’t take things to heart and passed it as one of “it happens” in racing moments. And now, as the off-season is kicking in, Bottas is hoping to get a ride, but that seems unlikely. Meanwhile, he’s not being able to stir clear of trouble even off the track, recently getting pulled over by a cop.

A normal reaction to this would be trying to get your way out of getting a ticket. But Bottas saw this as an opportunity to entertain his fans. While it’s unclear why he was pulled over, probably his wife, Emilia Pikkarainen, accompanying him made a reaction video. She asks, “What’s next?” Bottas nonchalantly replies, “What’s next?” as the camera pans to the cop writing a ticket! Here, take a look:

Bottas is an ambassador of ‘What’s next?’ it’s a life philosophy he chose after being dropped by Sauber. Previously talking to the media, he had said, “What is next? That’s the big question in life” And Bottas was serious about it, otherwise why would he tattoo the words ‘What’s next?’ on his thigh? Clearly, Bottas is someone who is not afraid of getting into trouble or giving out bold statements. ‘The 2024 Bottas calendar’ is the perfect example.

If you remember, Bottas released a nude calendar to raise funds for ‘Movember’, a men’s health charity. A previous Instagram post where he auctioned a photo of himself swimming naked in a stream inspired this idea. The calendar raised $150,000 to support the charity’s mission.

While for hardcore Valtteri Bottas fans, the pullover video is just another normal day, others are going crazy over it! Fans have started a meme contest as they dwell on possible reasons for him getting penalized. And the fan-stated reasons are hilarious!

Fans are going crazy over the Bottas incident

How could fans let go of the opportunity to jump on a meme fest? Well, in the Abu Dhabi incident, Bottas was issued a 10-second penalty. One fan, taking a sarcastic jibe at the cop with that reference, wrote, “They’re having him serve his penalty from his last race.” Another fan also jumped in with a hilarious 10-second reference. The fan wrote, “Can’t touch the mustache for 10sec.” We all know how much Bottas loves his mustache and his mullet, it literally featured on his helmet. So punishing him to stop playing with his mustache would really be something that would bother him!

What is it with an F1 driver getting pulled over and a hilarious story coming out of it? Remember when Formula One legend Ayrton Senna was pulled over for speeding and the cop asked him if Senna thought he was Nigel Mansell (1992 Formula One champion) for going so fast? A fan referencing that incident asked if the cops told Bottas the same thing. “Who do you think you are? Nigel Mansell?” the fan wrote. Well, if not Mansell, a fan suggests a more relevant possibility. According to the fan, maybe the cop asked: “Who do you think you are? Lewis Hamilton?” 

Another fan thought how hilarious would it be if a cop asked Bottas for his license and he instead gave his super license. Super license is issued by FIA to drivers making them eligible to drive in Formula One. The fan wrote, “License and registration please. Sure, here’s my super License.” Well, that would been a flex and may have actually gotten him out of it. Like this one, fans went overboard in their comments, drawing a comparison between normal life situations to that being an F1 driver. The fan wrote, “Come on man, 160 mph isn’t even that fast!” Which is like cruising speed for an F1 car that reaches speeds of more than 220 mph on average.

What do you think might be the reason behind the cop pulling over Bottas? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.