Verstappen lost 10 kilos after “a month to eat and drink what I want”

The Red Bull driver has lost 10 kilos, which he gained since the end of last season, in six weeks to be ready for next weekend’s season-opening F1 Bahrain Grand Prix.

He usually puts on just five kilos in the winter, above his 74 kilos weight in-season, but this winter he gained then lost double the amount.

“The whole year I feel like I'm below my normal weight,” he said to De Telegraaf. 

“I then give myself a month to eat and drink what I want and enjoy myself a bit." 

Some F1 drivers prefer to remain disciplined and keep a constant weight all year round, but not Verstappen.

"I like to hurt myself a bit then," he joked.

It was not only Verstappen who lost crucial weight recently. His RB19 also shed the kilos from last year’s title-winning car.

“That car was even more overweight than the kilos I gained in December,” Verstappen said. “So that's quite a lot."

Sleek and in-shape, Verstappen cut an ominous figure at preseason testing in Bahrain.

Seeking his third straight F1 championship, he already looks like the man to beat with the machinery capable of steering him to glory again.