Bottas reveals girlfriend's picture ploy to boost self-belief

Valtteri Bottas hardly comes across as a self-centered, narcissistic individual. Yet the Finn says the walls of his Monaco apartment are adorned with pictures of himself.

A nine-time Grand Prix winner, Bottas has yet to crack the tough nut that is Lewis Hamilton and beat his teammate to the world title.

A runner-up to Hamilton in 2019, Bottas will in all likelihood conclude this year's campaign again in the wake of the soon-to-be seven-time world champion.

Sustaining one's motivation while being subjected to the domination of such a formidable opponent can easily feel like an uphill battle. And Bottas better half, pro-cyclist Tiffany Cromwell who is well-versed in the art of mind management, is doing her part to boost her man's self-belief.

"I don't know what Lewis might do differently than Valtteri," Cromwell told Germany's 'Bild am Sonntag'.

"All I can do is keep highlighting the positive things and keep in mind what he's capable of and that it doesn't depend on what Lewis is doing."

• Hamilton: Not enough credit for 'incredibly fast' Bottas

Bottas revealed his girlfriend's basic ploy to spur him on in moments of doubt.

"One thing was pretty impressive," he said. "Tiff hung pictures of my victories in our apartment in Monaco - I never wanted any racing pictures hung on my wall because I thought it was just self-promotion.

"But she said to me, 'When you look at them, remember what you are capable of.' When I come home after a bad race and look at the pictures the next morning, I think, 'Ah yes, I won that!'"

Because a picture is worth a thousand words of motivation.

Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers

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