Bottas: I don’t really like watching myself on TV

Valtteri Bottas has so far shied away from watching Season 4 of Drive to Survive, revealing that he usually doesn't like to watch himself on screen.

The popular Netflix series chronicles the 2021 campaign, its drama, talking points and intrigues.

Episode 8 of Drive to Survive – entitled Dances with Wolff – depicts Bottas' fate at Mercedes, with the championship winning outfit pondering whether to keep the Finn onboard for a sixth consecutive season or to promote its Williams protégé George Russell.

Asked in pre-season testing last week in Bahrain on his views on how Drive to Survive had portrayed his situation at the time, Bottas admitted he hadn't watched the online series.

"I haven't seen any of that, so I don't really know," said the Alfa Romeo driver.

"Obviously, they take bits and pieces from different races and situations so I don't really know exactly what you’re referring to, so I can't really say much.

"Normally I don't really like watching myself on TV..." he added.

• Read also: Bottas happy with Alfa performance but worried about reliability

F1 fans have welcomed the latest instalments of Drive to Survive, but criticism has emerged over the extent of creative license taken by the series' producers for the purpose of enhancing the storyline's drama.

McLaren's Lando Norris who was excited to watch the series, nevertheless took exception with how his inner-team rivalry with teammate Daniel Ricciardo was portrayed.

"From my side, it looks good, maybe not so much from the other side [Ricciardo], but there are obviously some comments here and there that may be out of place.

"When you’re the person it’s about you don’t agree with it so much because it can make you look like you said something in a time and place which is definitely not correct."

Norris backed up his comments by pointing to a moment in an episode where footage from of a wheel-to-wheel scrap with Ricciardo features his words from an entirely different race.

"There’s a bit of me and Daniel going side by side in turn one when we’re not even close and I claim he pushes me off, which is from a completely different race," he said.

"There are things which may be a bit too much like that and I don’t agree too much with it, but on the whole, I think it’s just exciting and good for everyone.

"As long as they don’t overdo it and literally make someone look like they’ve done something which they definitely haven’t done, I think that’s too far.

"As long as they don’t do that, it’s good,” the McLaren driver concluded."

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