F1 is a sport in which fitness is paramount. Many F1 fans have often hailed Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton for their incredible level of fitness despite being 43 and 39 respectively. However, Valtteri Bottas has claimed he is fitter than even the two world champions.
When Matt Baker asked him on the Sky Sports F1 podcast if he believed he was the fittest driver on the grid, he replied, “I would say so. That’s what I believe. Obviously, I have been systematically training all my life for this sport. And since I picked up cycling, I have gained even more endurance“. He then added,
“I am certainly at the top of my game in terms of fitness“.
During the same podcast, he added that his partner Tiffany Cromwell, who is a professional road and gravel cyclist, has helped him improve his fitness even more as he has taken up cycling more seriously because of her. He revealed how his huge motivation to become better at cycling was to keep up with his partner.
Bottas’ efforts to improve his fitness seem to have paid off as he recently took part in a 22-hour water bike event from Corsica to Monaco. He took part in this event to promote a charity event organized by Princess Charlene.
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During the same conversation with Baker, he also revealed how he takes part in several gravel events from time to time. Doing so has also helped him qualify for the world championship.
Bottas’ success in cycling
Earlier this year, Bottas took to social media to celebrate his first win in cycling. He took part in a 70.8 miles [114 km] gravel race at the FNLD GRVL event, which took place just outside of Lahti, Finland.
A week before he won this race, he took part in another gravel event in the US, in which he finished second. The Finn’s success in cycling has also inspired his fellow F1 drivers and many of them have been seen cycling, albeit casually in most instances.
Considering that Bottas is achieving all his successes in cycling alongside his F1 duties, it comes as no surprise that he is one of the fittest drivers on the grid.
