Max Verstappen has been struggling with illness either side of the Saudi Arabian GP

Max Verstappen has revealed the extent of an illness he has been struggling with either side of the recent Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

Heading into the weekend at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit two weeks ago, the reigning two-time F1 champion was forced to miss Thursday’s traditional media duties due to him feeling unwell with a stomach bug.

Verstappen then completed the weekend, seemingly with no issues, notably recovering from 15th on the grid to finish second behind Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez.

The Dutchman also took a contentious point for the fastest lap of the race on the final tour to retain his lead in this season’s championship by a point over Perez heading into this weekend’s Australian Grand Prix.

Verstappen, however, has been struggling since that race, with the 25-year-old particularly laid low beforehand.

“I refused to believe in myself for a long time because, at home, I was really ill,” said Verstappen. “I could barely walk around and I felt like I was missing a lot.

“I got to the (Saudi Arabian GP) weekend really believing it (the illness) was gone. Because normally when you get sick, like two or three days after you are alright, you can do your workouts.

“But then when I jumped in the car in FP1, even just one performance, I felt like I had to recover for two laps to be able to breathe normally.

“So it definitely did affect me throughout the weekend, which I didn’t like because it was one of the first races where I just felt I was physically limited, and that’s really frustrating when you’re out in the car.

“Since then, I’ve been trying to work on it, trying to improve it, and I do think it has improved a lot.

“This weekend I should be alright. It just all came together in Jeddah. It’s quite a tough track in general, and when you don’t feel well, it hits hard on you.

“These things, unfortunately, happen, that you catch a virus and stuff, so hopefully, from now onwards, for the rest of the year I should be okay.”

Verstappen grateful for calendar break

It means Verstappen is now looking forward to the forthcoming spring break following the race at Melbourne’s Albert Park, with the gap on the calendar as a consequence of the cancelled Chinese Grand Prix that was never replaced.

Ordinarily, Verstappen would wish for the racing to continue but the three-and-a-half week hiatus ahead of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix at the end of the month will afford more recovery time.

Assessing the surprising gap in the calendar, Verstappen said: “Well, a couple of weeks ago, I would say that I was not looking forward to it. But then I got really ill and I’ve just been struggling a bit since that time.

“So for me, the few weeks (off) is just getting back to full fitness, getting in a full (training) programme. In a way, it’s probably nice now.

“But normally, if you feel well, I would prefer to keep racing. It has nothing to do with looking into the car, trying to make it faster. That’s a natural process.

“But it’s a bit weird to have three weeks off, especially this early on in the season.”