F1 News: Max Verstappen Reveals Impact Of Insane 2023 With Post-Season Illness

The Red Bull driver got his much-needed break after the conclusion of the 2023 season.

Following an intense 2023 season with significant accomplishments, Max Verstappen disclosed that the exertion of securing 19 wins out of 22 Grand Prix races, setting records, and travelling worldwide to various countries had a detrimental impact on his health. The Dutch driver recently revealed that he fell ill shortly after the Grand Finale in Abu Dhabi.

2023 could well be one of the best years of Verstappen's career in Formula 1. The Red Bull driver broke more than 18 records throughout the year and has earned himself a spot as one of the greatest drivers in Formula 1. However, several drivers and crew members complained of a hectic season toward the end, especially considering the time zone difference between Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi, with many started to develop symptoms of being unwell. 

Red Bull Press Image

Speaking about his illness post-Abu-Dhabi, Verstappen revealed on the Talking Bull podcast: 

“After Abu Dhabi, I was very ill for a couple of days, so I'm still recovering from that.

“Plus then of course, [there was] the travelling, so that didn't really help.

“[Now] I will have two really nice weeks where I can just switch off, not look at my emails and F1-related stuff.”

Speaking of emails, Verstappen added apologies for not being able to reply to his race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase. He added:

“Already, to be honest, I have to apologise to my engineer because you sent me three emails relating to next year, and I didn't respond.

“I saw him today so I made up for it! You know our relationship, it's a bromance.

“I'm definitely looking forward to taking a bit of time off. But I felt [in] Abu Dhabi when I was standing on the podium, it did hit me a little bit with the achievements this year.

“It was a bit sad to climb out of the RB19.”