Bottas cycles 350km (217 miles) from Malaysia to Singapore Grand Prix

Valtteri Bottas is cycling the 350km (217 miles) from Malaysia to this weekend's Singapore Grand Prix after choosing to avoid a short flight. He began the journey just hours after spinning out of Sunday's chaotic Bahrain Grand Prix at Sepang outside the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur, which was held as a one-off.

Bottas is making much of the route off-road and on gravel alongside his partner, professional cyclist Tiffany Cromwell. On Monday, stage two of the trip saw him spend nearly six hours on the bike, covering 161.91km, with the intention of arriving in Singapore ahead of the weekend's conditions around Marina Bay.

The 37-year-old secured a place at the Gravel World Championships by finishing fifth in his age group at an off-road qualifying event in the Czech Republic during Formula 1's summer hiatus. The World Championships fall on the same weekend as the Singapore Grand Prix, so he will be unable to take up the spot he earned.

Bottas is closely involved with FNLD GRVL, a race held each summer in his native Finland, and he used the time after the cancellation of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in 2023 to compete in a gravel race in Scotland. Cycling activities have formed a regular part of his calendar away from Formula 1.

He frequently trains and races with Cromwell, and cycling has become one of his main pursuits outside the cockpit. Bottas has struggled since joining Cadillac this season: he is 22nd in the drivers' standings, is yet to score a point after 16 Grands Prix and has failed to finish eight races.

He must be in Singapore for his media commitments on Thursday ahead of this weekend's Singapore Grand Prix.