Verstappen gets toughened up for 2018

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Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen looked quite the picture as he hit the gym this week.

The 20-year-old was on the ski slopes over the Christmas and New year holidays. But there's only so much preparation you can do for Formula 1 while on the piste.

So this week it was back to the off-season 'office', and some proper work in the gym. In particular, it's the neck muscles that require a lot of work to maintain while away from the race track.

You can see Verstappen using a weight-loaded strap around his head to simulate the G-forces that drivers experience during a Grand Prix.

Even the fittest drivers can struggle to keep their heads up during some of the longest, fastest races on the Formula 1 calendar. The sooner they start getting their neck muscles into shape for 2018 the better.

The first test of the new 2018 cars takes place at the Circuit de Catalunya-Barcelona on February 26 - March 1. It's followed by a second pre-season test at the same venue a week later. The first race of the season is the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on March 25.

Meanwhile, top marks to Verstappen's photographer for selecting a mean and moody monochrome effect for the picture!

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.