30 April 2023 , 06:30
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Max Verstappen aims to be Baku to his best today - with a little help from top-quality British engineering.
The reigning champ resumes his quest to make it three championships on the spin in Azerbaijan after a three-week break in which most of his rivals have been soaking up the sun.
However, the Dutch ace has shunned the hotspots and the chance to top up his tan by putting in the hard yards.
The 25-year-old has instead spent time with his British fitness coach - and the engineers at Red Bull’s base in Milton Keynes.
Verstappen has been gushing in his praise of Bradley Scanes, the 35-year-old who has become one of the most trusted men within his inner circle.
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The two met at the Circuit de Catalunya back in 2019 - and they have been working in harmony since then.
Scanes has a varied background in the sport, having also worked alongside gymnast Max Whitlock as part of Team GB.
When not in Buckinghamshire, the team’s director of Human Performance has been flown out to Monaco to maintain his employer’s fitness regime.
Scanes said: “We understand each other - the atmosphere between us is really great - it’s always relaxed.
Verstappen has been at Red Bull's base in Milton Keynes (HOCH ZWEI/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images)“It has to be because F1 is one of the most demanding sports.”
It was not unusual in the three-week break between the drivers’ last outing in Australia and their latest race on the banks of the Caspian Sea for teams to be given downtime.
All the Red Bull mechanics were given one week’s leave and Mercedes granted race team employees extra rest days over Easter.
Verstappen has been struggling to shake off a virus that bugged him throughout March.
He reported being below-par physically in Jeddah and Melbourne - and the cancellation of the Chinese Grand Prix could not have come at a better time.
But the Dutchman chose to iron out issues in the simulator with the engineers.
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He feels humbled by the amount of work being undertaken on his behalf and felt it only right that he left his penthouse apartment in Monaco to work with Christian Horner’s staff.
Fitness coach Scanes has also worked with British gymnast Max Whitlock (Daily Mirror/Andy Stenning)Around 80 of 1,000 regularly travel to the races and those not directly involved have been waiting for the chance to introduce upgrades to the cars ahead of the weekend in Azerbaijan.
The updates usually take around two months to develop and a string of teams, including Alpine and McLaren have already announced they will be making improvements to their cars.
Given Verstappen’s input during the past couple of weeks, it also appears inevitable that leading constructors Red Bull will be doing likewise.