Valtteri Bottas revealed the bizarre story of how a stolen Cadillac, a missing paddock pass, and even the FBI became part of his Miami Formula 1 weekend
Valtteri Bottas shares bizarre Miami theft story
Current Cadillac driver Valtteri Bottas has revealed an extraordinary off-track incident from the 2026 Miami Grand Prix weekend, recounting how the SUV assigned to him was stolen while he was getting ready to head to the circuit.
Speaking on the What’s Next? podcast, the former Sauber, Mercedes, and Williams driver explained that he had been staying at an Airbnb in Fort Lauderdale, in what had been described to him as a quiet area north of the Miami circuit. The 36-year-old had been provided with a Cadillac Escalade for transportation outside the track, but what was supposed to be a routine journey quickly turned into one of the most surreal experiences of his career.
“The thief obviously wasn’t interested in Formula 1”
Bottas explained what happened:
“I was in the shower when Paul Harris, who was also staying at the Airbnb, came to get me and said, ‘The car is gone.’ I couldn’t believe it. I went outside, and the Escalade had disappeared.”
“At that point, the only thing I could think about was that I was going to be late getting to the track, but fortunately they sent another Escalade to pick us up. Once I got in the replacement car, I suddenly remembered that I had left my paddock pass inside the stolen vehicle—but thankfully we managed to sort that out.”
That detail sparked a humorous exchange with podcast host Paul Ripke about what the thief could potentially have done with a Formula 1 paddock credential.
Bottas joked: “They could have walked straight into the circuit with VIP parking access, wandered around the paddock, and maybe even taken my place in the team.”
The story became even stranger when the car was eventually recovered.
“The Escalade was found the next day in a high-crime area,” Valtteri Bottas continued. “Both the police and the FBI became involved in the search because my paddock pass was inside the vehicle. Someone could theoretically have entered the circuit and bypassed security checks.”
Despite that possibility, Valtteri Bottas was convinced the theft had nothing to do with Formula 1 itself: “Obviously, the thief wasn’t interested in Formula 1. They probably used the car for some other crime and then abandoned it. Or maybe they realised it was linked to a Formula 1 driver and decided it was too risky to keep.”
While many drivers might have been left furious or shaken by such an experience, Valtteri Bottas appeared to see the funny side. His final reaction was perhaps the most unexpected part of the entire story:
“It was a sad episode, but at the same time actually pretty great! Nothing like that had ever happened to me before.”
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