The Australian driver was involved in a high-speed incident at Albert Park while battling Prema teammate Sharp during the FIA Formula 3 Championship sprint race.
The pair collided heavily at Turn 5 and were both forced to withdraw from the feature race on Sunday on medical grounds.
Speaking on the Missed Apex F1 podcast, Wharton confirmed the impact led to a split lung that required a cautious recovery period and ruled him out of full preparation for the following rounds.
“At first, I had a pneumothorax in my lung, which is basically a split lung,” he said.
“I couldn’t train, I couldn’t do any fitness for three and a half weeks, and I couldn’t fly until I got cleared by the medical team.”
The injury, while managed conservatively, significantly disrupted his season momentum at a critical stage, with Wharton describing the recovery period as “one of the most boring three weeks I’ve had” as he waited for clearance to return to Europe.
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Wharton also revealed that in-car reactions during the crash may have contributed to his injury, with the driver instinctively holding his breath before impact.
“I had a bit of time to brace for it which is why I ended up with the pneumothorax, the hospital said,” he explained.
“Because I braced and held my breath, my lung obviously hit my chest cavity. So that’s probably why I actually had the split lung. But I actually had a bit of time.
“And when it’s going that fast, it ends up in slow motion though for us drivers. Like we know that it’s coming, and yeah, I had a lot of time to prepare and went in backwards quite hard.”
What’s rule one of racing your teammate? 😬
The incident that brought the opening Sprint Race of 2026 to an early conclusion ❌#F3 #AusGP pic.twitter.com/jRXfEo1Kkn
— Formula 3 (@Formula3) March 7, 2026
The crash itself came during an intense intra-team battle with Sharp, with Wharton acknowledging the incident was avoidable and not reflective of the standard expected within a tightly contested junior category where teammates are often each other’s closest rivals.
“We were both very fast that weekend,” he said.
“At that point of the race, we were four tenths quicker than the leaders, which is the positives we have to take away.
“The crash itself was so avoidable from both sides. As a team, it’s never a good look. And even as drivers, it’s not a good look.
“To have a perception of crashing with teammates is not what anyone wants. So at the end of the day, we’ve spoken, we’re always going to be quite close, and at the end of the day, it can’t happen again.
“We’re young drivers, yes, but there was a lot of people involved, and Sunday ended up with only one Prema car on the track. So we have to take that under our wing now and make sure it doesn’t happen again.
“But for a crash itself, it’s hard to always point fingers and know who’s at fault. At the end of the day we’re both in our teens still, and it showed quite easily at the end of Turn 4, Turn 5.
“So we just need to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
Despite the severity of the incident on-track, Wharton said there was no lingering hostility between the pair, noting the realities of the junior formula environment where drivers are both teammates and direct competitors for future opportunities.
“I’m someone that puts racing on track and life in two different scenarios,” he said.
“At the end of the day, we’re in such a small world and such a small paddock that if you start ending up not liking people because of a crash on track, you’re going to have a long year, and you’re going to have a lot of people that don’t talk to you because they know that if you crash with them, they’re not going to speak to you.
“So it’s very hard to manage it. And of course, in any other sport, probably would never speak to him again.
“But we’re in a sport where I can see him every day. I’m in London at the moment training, and I was with him yesterday. So it’s like we’re going to be close, and it’s something that the team needs as well.
“We’re there to push the team forward, not just ourselves. So of course, there’s never going to be bad blood.
“And I’m sure when we get a one-two at some point this year it will all go away.”
With the physical setback now resolved, Wharton has returned to full training as he prepares for the next phase of the season, including a demanding run of European races beginning with Monaco next month.
The 19-year-old said the enforced break was frustrating given the importance of maintaining rhythm in Formula 3, particularly with limited track time and compressed race weekends.
“I’m back to my healthy self, still trying to get back into the gym and trying to get back to where I was because before the [Australian] Grand Prix, I was in a really good spot,” Wharton added.
“So when you have a break like this for us drivers, it’s quite tough to get back straight away.”
Despite the setback, Wharton said he was firmly focused on the remainder of the season and maintaining his push towards F1.
“At the end of the day, you can’t control everything that happens in motorsport, but I can control a lot of things,” he said.
“And I still have another nine races to go this season. And motorsport changes very quickly.
“I can go from sitting here as a Formula 3 driver to being in the talk to being in Formula One very quickly.”
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