Sepang to Singapore: Valtteri Bottas drove 350 km with his partner before the F1 race

Valtteri Bottas has found a rather unusual way to travel to the next Formula 1 race.

After withdrawing from the Bahrain Grand Prix at Sepang on Sunday, the Cadillac driver decided not to fly or drive to Singapore. Instead, he is cycling around 350 kilometers across Malaysia accompanied by his partner, Australian professional road and gravel cyclist Tiffany Cromwell.

The 37-year-old hit the road shortly after his early exit from the race, with the route taking in country roads, plantations, dirt tracks and gravel roads. Bottas has posted footage of himself cycling in the dark, while Cromwell has previously shared videos of the pair training around the Sepang coast and palm plantations.

Bottas completed 161.91 kilometers in almost six hours during the second stage of the journey on Monday. He is expected to complete the ride in three days and arrive in Singapore in time to fulfill his mandatory media commitments on Thursday before training begins on Friday, according to reports. Courtesy: Valtteri Bottas Instagram

Screengrab from Valtteri Bottas’ Instagram

Cross-border riding is hardly an impulsive decision for Bottas, as he has developed a serious interest in cycling outside the Formula 1 paddock. He regularly competes in gravel events and is co-founder of FNLD GRVL, a gravel cycling event in Finland. He also recently qualified for the World Gravel Championship, although he will miss the event as it clashes with the Singapore Grand Prix.

Cromwell, meanwhile, is an accomplished professional cyclist in her own right, having raced at the highest level on both road and gravel. The pair often train and ride together, making cycling a familiar part of Bottas’ life outside of Formula 1.

The ride also comes at the end of a difficult first season for Bottas with Cadillac. The American manufacturer is competing in Formula 1 for the first time this year, with Bottas and Sergio Perez tasked with helping establish the new team.

Bottas has had a particularly frustrating campaign. After 16 Grands Prix, he is 22nd without a point in the Drivers’ Championship, with a best finish of 13th in China and eight retirements.

His latest retirement came after just seven laps at Sepang. Bottas started the wet race on slicks, spun into the gravel and was forced out. He later admitted that the gamble did not pay off.

Now, before he gets back behind the wheel in Singapore, Bottas is putting his cycling legs to work. Sepang to Singapore is a 350 kilometer detour, considerably longer than the usual distance between two F1 race weekends.

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