While others golf or play paddle, Bottas gets away from racing action by competing on two wheels instead of four
Valtteri Bottas Instagram
If you opened social media this weekend and stumbled across any of Valtteri Bottas’s accounts you’d have likely seen a number of photos that are increasingly common: the Finn grimacing through a muddied face on a bicycle at a competitive event..
On this occasion it was the Belgian Waffle Ride in Kansas, where Bottas and partner Tiffany Cromwell tackled 132km on different surfaces, with the latter winning the women’s race and the former finishing second in the men’s.
That success comes off the back of a strong result that went slightly under the radar in Qatar, as Bottas picked up four points with an impressive run to eighth as the upgraded Alfa Romeo delivered improved pace. It matched his best result of the season but that came back in the season-opener, and there have just been a pair of tenth-place finishes since to get excited about in what has been a tough campaign overall.
Bottas joined girlfriend and Olympic athlete Tiffany Cromwell at 132km Belgium Waffle Ride
Valtteri Bottas Instagram
“For sure in this sport you get more satisfaction when you’re doing well and meeting the targets, the atmosphere is always more positive in those sort of moments,” Bottas tells Motor Sport. “But that’s the sport, there’s always going to be ups and downs.
“Of course sometimes fighting at the very back at the grid in some races this year makes it tougher and more difficult. But now I just need to take a step back and think about the big picture and the targets in the future, and that needs to be the motivation.
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While Qatar was a positive, it still reflects Alfa Romeo’s season of sporadic chances to score points as a lower midfield team, and that’s not a position Bottas — or the team — will be content with as they move forward.
“No, we need more. We need more, definitely. I think everyone is on board with that in this team. The target is to be much stronger than this.
“When I signed with the team, that’s when I was already committed until the end of 2024, so it was always clear for me that the first part was this three-year journey and then we’ll see what happens. It’s nice to know everything is fixed for next year, and of course I have bigger hopes for next year than this year. The same in the whole team, everyone definitely wants more than this, so I think next year’s going to be quite important to see the progress we can make.”
Bottas reaped the rewards of Alfa’s recent upgrade package in Qatar — placing eighth
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It’s a telling comment. While all of the talk had been around Audi’s arrival in 2026 and what a coveted seat that will be, Bottas has a few reservations. Not about the German manufacturer’s planned arrival — something that currently is attractive to him — but if the Sauber-run team continues to struggle for point-scoring opportunities then he could end up being part of the driver market fun in 12 months’ time.
“I think there could be a lot of movement when there’s a year like that and many contracts expiring, but let’s see. We’re going to talk about the future with the team early next year and then we’ll see. I don’t need to stress or worry about it yet.
“For me personally of course the direction we are going to be taking in terms of results next year is going to have an effect on my decisions as well, but at the moment I would definitely be happy to commit for the long-term for what’s new for the team in 2026.
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“It is going to be a big change but that’s still a few years away and I think more of the question mark — at least from my side — is what’s going to happen in the next two years, in 2024 and 2025. It’s interesting times, and definitely Audi is not coming to the sport with half effort, it’s full effort and for sure they want to do well.”
It might be full effort, but it’s also something that Bottas is yet to see much of given the way that the Audi and Alfa Romeo projects — the latter not seeing huge investment at this stage — are being kept separate.
“It is still a bit too far away. I haven’t seen any of the facilities yet or really met any people there. We’ve got Alfa Romeo so I also want to respect that and not mix two brands together.”
It all adds up to a situation that actually makes Bottas more likely to be posting about those cycling races. It’s an escape, and a chance to go and be competitive without so many external factors that are outside of his control.
“Definitely [it helps balance against F1]. Like if I do a cycling event or a race and I’m on the start line I know that everyone is on the same line, you know? It’s just the stopwatch and who is the strongest, and also who is technically good because there is also quite a lot of race strategy involved as a rider — where you place yourself, which group you’re in, all these things.
“So it’s only up to you in the end, and that’s the nice thing about it. Especially in gravel racing when there’s no outside support allowed, so you’re on your own. Even if you have a puncture it’s up to you to fix it, so it’s definitely nice and refreshing and a very big contrast to this sport — a little bit less politics inside!”
Tactics, tyre changes and wheel-to-wheel battles are often a constant in Bottas’ life — both in and away from F1
Valtteri Bottas Instagram
I joke that there are fewer concerns about tyre compounds, but am quickly corrected: “Actually there’s different tyre choices you can make for the course and tyre pressures etc. But that’s up to you.”
He’s already an elite performer in F1, but with an Olympian as a partner and such regular commitment to competitive races — and success within them — could cycling even lead to Bottas representing his country in another sport?
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“I think that’s quite a long shot, although Finland might have some [Olympic] spots because there’s not so many cyclists there! But that would require a lot, and during an active Formula 1 career it wouldn’t be possible to do that amount of hours of training, because then eventually that would start to hurt this sport because if you became a purely endurance athlete for sure it’s not ideal.
“So I do it for challenging myself and also setting some other goals in other things, which I find really refreshing. I find it’s good training for me, and good mentally for me.”
As the most recent results on both two wheels and four prove, it certainly doesn’t hurt.
