Overview
- The 36-year-old detailed his struggles in a Players’ Tribune essay released as he prepares for his 250th start with new team Cadillac at this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix.
- He wrote that a 2014 push to cut weight at Williams, during an era without a seat-plus-driver minimum, spiraled into near-starvation with steamed-vegetable meals and extra training he hid from his coach.
- Bottas said the regime left him dizzy in crowds and waking at 4 a.m. in “starvation mode,” and he recalled telling his then-partner, “If I die, I die,” before seeking help from a psychologist.
- He described falling into depression in 2018 at Mercedes after team orders and the “wingman” label, deciding to quit over the winter before a long walk in a Finnish forest reset his outlook.
- Speaking to reporters in Miami, he said F1 now offers better mental and physical coaching, and he hopes sharing his story helps others recognize problems earlier and ask for support.