Valtteri Bottas delivers blunt verdict on Coachella after appearance with Daniel Ricciardo

Valtteri Bottas has ruled out a return to Coachella after admitting the busy festival “wasn’t my thing”

Cadillac Formula 1 driver Valtteri Bottas has firmly ruled out a return to the famous Coachella music festival, as he admitted that the influencer-heavy event simply "wasn't my thing".

During the five-week break between the Japanese and Miami Grands Prix, Bottas chose to spend part of his Californian break at the world-renowned music festival in Indio. Headlined by Sabrina Carpenter and Justin Bieber this year, Bottas explained that the event was too busy for his liking.

The Finnish driver was spotted at the event with former Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo. But after a reporter at the Miami Grand Prix told Bottas that he was jealous of his 'Coachella adventure', he quickly responded, "Don't be."

He added, with a smile: "It wasn't my thing. Too many people, man. Too many people. I'm glad I went, but I'm not going back."

Bottas joined the Cadillac F1 team in 2026 alongside former Red Bull driver Sergio Perez. As the American outfit adjusts to the championship in its debut season, it currently sits 10th in the standings, ahead of only Aston Martin.

While there have only been three race weekends so far, Bottas explained to the media ahead of the Miami Grand Prix that he had already seen progress within the team. "Yeah, in the first three races, I felt like every race weekend was getting smoother and smoother," he said.

"We had less and less issues. So expecting a good step this weekend. It's a sprint weekend, so we have to be on it from the get-go."

As the Miami race weekend features the second sprint race of the season, there is just one practice session before sprint qualifying. However, this has been expanded to a 90-minute session rather than the usual 60-minute session.