Valtteri Bottas posted a picture of himself with former Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong on social media on Monday.
Bottas is a big fan of adventure sports and cycling in particular. His partner Tiffany Cromwell herself is a road and gravel cyclist, who travels the world competing in various events.
The Finn is currently taking a small vacation in the United States, where he seems to be enjoying himself quite a bit. Last week, he posted a picture of himself exposing his entire backside, on social media which went viral instantly. This week, another picture has gone viral, but for very different reasons.
Out with the locals 🚲 pic.twitter.com/XOyfcvFpIh
— Valtteri Bottas (@ValtteriBottas) May 15, 2022
Bottas took to his Twitter and Instagram, to post a picture with former seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong. He put up a caption that said, “Out with the locals.”
It was met with mixed response from fans of the 32-year old Alfa Romeo star.
F1 Twitter’s reaction to Valtteri Bottas cycling with Lance Armstrong
Armstrong was a legendary cyclist. He was considered to be the greatest of all time, when he won seven consecutive Tour de France titles between 1999-2005.
However, his reputation got completely tarnished after he got involved in a doping scandal. It led to the American cyclist being stripped off all his Tour de France titles, and the media labeled him as a disgrace.
I would be careful about taking training advice from him.
— Johan Richter (@jrhislib) May 16, 2022
In 2012, the United States Anti-Doping Agency named Armstrong as the ringleader of “the most sophisticated, professionalized and successful doping program that sport has ever seen”.
Of all the people to go cycling with 😑😑
— 고생 끝에 낙p이 온다 (@AhijahB) May 16, 2022
Since getting convicted with these accusations, Armstrong has lost all of his sponsorships and endorsements. He leads a quiet life now, away from the lights and cameras. However, his picture with ten-time F1 race winner Bottas has sparked an interest among fans of the sport, regarding the 50-year old’s past.
I hear juicing makes you go faster 😎 https://t.co/trvO2dnoSS
— Pixel Gang (@dat_mang) May 16, 2022
Bottas will travel back to Europe soon to rejoin his team in preparations ahead of the 2022 Spanish GP. The Finnish driver is currently eighth in the Championship, and is enjoying a stellar first season with Alfa Romeo.