©ToroRosso
In terms of driving, what are the differences between an F1 car compared to what you have experienced in other series?
"One of the main things is the Pirelli tires. Lucky for me, they are similar to what we had in F2 but the way he consume them is different.
"Because they have more grip, they are more sensitive. For example, if you push too much in Sector 1, the tyre is finished for Sector 2 and 3.
"So, you got to learn to push or lift the throttle when needed to find your pace and be efficient on a number of laps. But there’s definitely more grip with more braking, more accelerating and it’s really impressive.
"Maybe I got used to all of it faster than what I would have though. But the high speeds that we have are still massive."
Regarding your preparation, have you done things differently for this season?
"There was a bit of an increase on the preparation side, that’s for sure.
"Formula 2 was already very physical, people tend to forget that. For the overall strength it was ok. Of course, I focused a lot on the neck muscles and also did a lot of cardio exercices because the races are a lot longer.
"We also did ‘heat sessions’ to get ready for high temperatures like in Bahrain. Mentally, F1 is a different world. We’re so much busier here than F2 or F3 (laughs)!
"We all have strategies to keep ourselves on form, on the sleeping side for example, but it remains a tough environment and I’m not entirely used to it yet. But the more days I spend on track the better it will be."
