Carlos Sainz has doubled his training to prepare for 2017 F1 cars

Toro Rosso driver Carlos Sainz has revealed that he has gained 4kg in weight ahead of the 2017 season and has been using a modified helmet to strengthen his neck in anticipation of the new rules.

With the new breed of Formula 1 cars expected to deliver lap times five seconds faster than in 2016, the cornering forces will rise, meaning drivers will have a harder time in the car.

Therefore more muscle mass is required and Sainz says he’s had to massively up his training regime to prepare.

“Indeed, they will be harder to drive, so the training we’ve been doing up to late last season won’t be useful. We now must go some extra miles so to speak,” he said.

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“Instead of the usual 50 minutes [of crossfit sessions], we now do between 90 and 120 minutes, the same as a grand prix. Thus, I work out for longer times at around 180-190 beats per minute. 

“I also include boxing and cardio work in those sessions, which all in all means I work my physical endurance way more by doing stuff all the time.”

The Spaniard has found a novel way of exercising his neck to cope with the increased g-forces. Along with more traditional exercises, he wears a weighted helmet during go-karting sessions to experience what driving the new cars might be like.

“We work out the neck in two ways. Firstly, we pull and hold weights with it in the gym, which is very similar to what we will do on the track – resisting g-forces, that is – and secondly we are doing specific go-karting, which I do two or three times a week.

“The weights make my helmet around 1.5 to two kilos heavier, which translates into similar g-forces I’ll have to withstand in my F1 car. That is just one of a complete set of exercises I’m doing to work my neck fitness to the full.”

Sainz expects his young age to help him compared to some of the older drivers, however he concedes that they know what to expect, having already experienced cars which produce higher cornering speed.

“On the one hand, I believe you get to the best physical form of your life when you’re 21 or 22 years old, and that could be good. But on the other hand, some drivers like Fernando Alonso, Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Räikkonen have already experienced in 2005, 2006 and 2007 the kind of g-forces we will have this year.”