Two weeks later he was hit by a stomach virus that prevented him from being present on the day before the Saudi Arabian GP, Max Verstappen, already at the Australian GP. He revealed that he is still not fully recovered and assured that he will take a break after Melbourne’s call to get back in shape to be 100% at the next appointment in Azerbaijan. He also assured that he had already underestimated the seriousness of Jeddah’s disease.
“At home I was very sick, I could barely walk. I felt like I was missing a lung. I came into the weekend thinking it was over because usually when you get sick two or three days later you’re usually fine, then you can do your workout. But when I got into the car in the first free practice session, after just one lap I had the feeling that I had to recover for two laps to breathe normally,” said the Dutchman. Despite this, he managed to move up from 15th on Sunday into second place, behind only teammate “Checo” Pérez, both with a Red Bull well ahead of them.
“It definitely affected me all weekend, which I didn’t like because it was one of the first races where I felt physically restricted and that’s really frustrating when you’re in the car.” added max.
feel better”
Verstappen said he feels better and freer after these two weeks, but that he still has time to be at his best physically: “I tried to work, to improve and I think he has improved a lot. So normally this weekend should be good.
“I think it all came together and Jeddah is a pretty tough track in general – if you’re not feeling well then it hits hard. But unfortunately these things happen, you get a virus… So I hope it will be good for the rest of the semester from now on.
Max Verstappen at the Australian F1 GP in 2023
“A few weeks ago I would have said I really didn’t want to rest. But I got really sick and I’ve struggled a bit since then, especially the last race. So for me these three weeks (between Australia and Baku) will be just to get back in shape, to have a packed schedule. In a way it’s probably good now,” said Max, who was present at the press conference ahead of the third round of the season.
Of course, he made it clear that it was “a bit weird” to be “three weeks off” on Tuesday after the Australian GP, ”especially at the start of the season”.
Max Verstappen, with Alonso at the 2023 Australian F1 GP
Source: La Neta Neta
I’m George Gonzalez, a professional journalist and author at The Nation View. With more than 5 years of experience in the field, I specialize in covering sports news for various print media outlets. My passion for writing has enabled me to craft stories that capture the attention of readers all over the world.
