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Prior to the Dutch GP, Alfa Romeo F1 driver Valtteri Bottas participated in a 100-mile gravel cycling race in Colorado dressed up as Duffman from The Simpsons. Switching to two wheels earlier this week, the Finn finished 20th out of the 935 riders who had entered the race.
Bottas won the internet after pictures of him dressed up as the famous Simpsons character Duffman made the rounds. When asked why he was dressed up as the character, he replied that he dearly wanted to win the prize for the best costume at the cycling event - their own weight in beer.
“The prize for the best costume was you win your weight in beer, and I really wanted to win the prize,” Bottas was quoted by Crash.net. “So I was thinking about, it’s mainly an American crowd, so I went for The Simpsons, and Duffman. And I won!”
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The Alfa Romeo F1 driver went on to add that he initially wanted to dress up as Homer Simpson, but had to discard the idea due to the weight of the costume.
“I would still go for Homer,” he added. “But I had to figure out with the costume, you still need to be able to cycle up the hill, and Homer would have been a bit too much…”
Valtteri Bottas won the prize for the best costume, but added that he only kept a six-pack of beer and donated the rest to the spectators and his competitors.
Bottas' summer break venture and the reason behind his costume have left the internet in splits. Fans took to social media to react to the former Mercedes driver's hilarious antics.
Here are a few fan reactions to Bottas dressing up as Duffman:
Valtteri Bottas reveals the factors behind his transformation into social media icon
The Finnish driver has become a social media sensation in the recent past, although he has been in the public eye for quite some time. Bottas made his F1 debut a decade ago with Williams F1, later switching to Mercedes where he remained for five years until 2021.
During the Dutch GP, Valtteri Bottas was questioned by the media about his recent social media activity and asked if he would have posted such content earlier in his career.
“I think it’s a combination of a few things,” he said (via PlanetF1). “For sure I would never imagine doing stuff like that for example in my rookie year, but I think once you’ve been around a bit more you get comfortable with things.”
He added:
“I just don’t take social media seriously anymore. I’m more than happy to make fun out of myself and do that kind of stuff. And people love it, so they can kind of relate that ‘okay, he’s just a normal guy who has a sense of humour’. So it’s fun to share stuff like that,” Valtteri Bottas added.
