Valtteri Bottas covers 420km from Malaysia to Singapore in four days
Valtteri Bottas has arrived in Singapore after cycling more than 400 kilometres from Malaysia over four days, completing an unconventional journey between two Formula 1 race weekends.
The Cadillac driver crossed the Causeway from Johor into Singapore on Wednesday, October 7, after setting off from Sepang International Circuit on Sunday night. Malaysian cyclist Shaiful Nizam Yahya, known as Epul, accompanied him on the journey.
Early reports described the trip as a 350-kilometre ride, referring to the approximate distance between Sepang and Singapore. Bottas’ actual route was considerably longer.
His first Strava activity covered 56.6 kilometres in two hours and eight minutes. On the second day, he logged 161.91 kilometres in almost six hours. He then rode roughly another 160 kilometres on Tuesday and around 40 kilometres on Wednesday, putting the four-day total at 419.67 kilometres.
The longer distance reflected the route Bottas chose. Rather than taking the most direct roads south, he mixed paved sections with gravel tracks, rural roads and routes through Malaysia’s palm oil plantations.
Gravel, darkness and Malaysian back roads
Bottas announced the trip on social media shortly after retiring from Sunday’s Bahrain Grand Prix at Sepang.
«Yea I’m riding to Singapore… On the gravel roads less travelled,» he wrote, showing off the Canyon Grail CFR gravel bike he was using for the trip.
His Instagram updates turned the ride into a running travel diary. Footage showed Bottas cycling through dirt tracks after dark, passing through plantations and encountering monkeys along quieter stretches of road. One clip showed little more than the beam from his bicycle light illuminating the path ahead.
Yea I’m riding to Singapore 🚲 On the gravel roads less travelled with my new @canyon_bikes Grail CFR. See you there 🇸🇬 https://t.co/jFKZCM6Vnq
— Valtteri Bottas (@ValtteriBottas) October 5, 2026
The first stage took him towards Port Dickson. By Monday, Bottas was already covering century-length distances, riding 161.91 kilometres through the Malaysian countryside.
Local social media users also began tracking his progress as he travelled south, with sightings appearing from different parts of Malaysia.
Bottas reaches Singapore before race weekend
Bottas reached the Sultan Iskandar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine complex in Johor at about 2:20 p.m. on Wednesday. Around 20 minutes later, he was seen cycling past Woodlands Crossing on the Singapore side.
Bottas regularly competes in gravel events and co-founded FNLD GRVL, a gravel cycling event in Finland. He also qualified for the 2026 UCI Gravel World Championships but cannot race there because the event clashes with the Singapore Grand Prix weekend.
