Formula One driver Valtteri Bottas has chosen to cycle 350 kilometres from Malaysia to Singapore for this weekend's Grand Prix instead of taking a private jet.
The 37-year-old Finnish driver snubbed the conventional luxury travel favoured by most drivers on the grid to embark on the 217-mile journey shortly after crashing out of Sunday's chaotic Bahrain Grand Prix. The event was held at the Sepang circuit in Malaysia due to security concerns in the Middle East.
Bottas is undertaking the grueling trip off-road on gravel tracks alongside his partner Tiffany Cromwell, an Australian professional road cyclist who rides for the Canyon-SRAM team. The pair must complete the cross-border trek and reach Singapore by Thursday so Bottas can fulfil his mandatory media commitments ahead of Sunday's night race on the Marina Bay street circuit.
The Cadillac driver has been documenting his journey across the Malay Peninsula on social media, sharing several videos and photographs with fans. In one update posted on X alongside a video of himself cycling in the dark, Bottas wrote: "Yea I'm riding to Singapore."
In the same post, he confirmed he was riding "on the gravel roads less travelled with my new @canyon_bikes Grail CFR. See you there." Another upload showed the scenery along the route, accompanied by a caption noting he was "taking the path less travelled (and maybe a bit longer)."
The physical demand of the journey was highlighted on Monday during the second day of the cycle. Bottas covered 161.91 kilometres across nearly six hours of riding through challenging terrain.
Competitive cycling background and schedule conflict
While an overland cycling trip between Grand Prix venues is highly unusual for a Formula One driver, Bottas has a well-established history of high-level endurance cycling. He frequently competes in off-road events during the motorsport off-season, often alongside Cromwell.
During the summer, Bottas qualified for the official UCI Gravel World Championships after finishing fifth in an off-road qualifying event in the Czech Republic. Gravel racing, a rapidly growing discipline governed by cycling's international body, takes competitors across unpaved roads, forest tracks, and gravel trails.
However, because the Gravel World Championships take place this coming weekend, Bottas will be unable to participate in the race due to his Formula One racing duties in Singapore. Beyond international qualifiers, he is also closely involved with FNLD GRVL, an annual gravel cycling race held in his native Finland.
Struggles in the 2026 Formula One season
Bottas is one of Formula One's most experienced drivers, boasting ten career Grand Prix victories. Prior to joining American manufacturer Cadillac for the 2026 season, he spent 2025 serving as the official reserve driver for Mercedes, where he previously won multiple constructors' titles alongside Lewis Hamilton.
Despite his past success, the 2026 campaign has proven exceptionally difficult for the veteran driver. Through the first 16 races of the season with Cadillac, Bottas has failed to score a single point and has been forced to retire from eight races, including Sunday's crash in Malaysia.
He now faces a race against time both on two wheels and on four, hoping his 350-kilometre bicycle journey brings a change of fortune when practice sessions begin in Singapore.
