Valtteri Bottas takes extraordinary route to Singapore Grand Prix

The Cadillac driver and cycling aficionado has decided to trade in a private jet pass for his off-road bike in a remarkable cross-country journey.

Eagle-eyed fans of the Finn spotted that the trip was taking place on the popular cycling app Strava.

There, Bottas detailed how he will cycle around 350 kilometres over multiple days in an attempt to arrive in Singapore in time for Thursday’s media duties.

In fact, he got the trip underway after the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia, where he failed to finish as he was caught out by the weather conditions.

The 37-year-old’s first leg took him from Kuala Lumpur to Port Dickson, covering 56.6 km in 2 hours and 8 minutes.

That trip was relatively short compared to the rest of the journey, but as Bottas showed on his Instagram, it required him to cycle through the night, barely able to see in front of him, relying on a small light on his handlebars.

Such feats are nothing new for Bottas, who regularly competes in cycling events with his partner and professional cyclist Tiffany Cromwell.

During the 2023 season, he took part in a 100km charity bike ride dressed as The Simpsons character Duffman, and even won, securing beer for fans in attendance in Colorado.

A year later, after being informed he’d be off the grid in 2025, Bottas jumped straight on his bike.

He and Zhou Guanyu were dropped by Sauber, and Bottas responded by doing an Ironman on his own property the following day, completing a 3.9km swim, a 180.2km bicycle ride and a 42.2km marathon run.

That was more extreme than his current endeavour, but not when you take into account the two races he’s currently in between.

The Singapore Grand Prix regularly reaches 90 per cent humidity levels, with this weekend’s temperatures expected to be between 28 and 33 degrees.

All of that means cockpit temperatures reach up to 60 degrees, meaning Bottas may well end up wishing he was back on his bike once practice gets underway.