Overcoming jet lag the first task for Verstappen

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Max Verstappen is heading half way around the world for his first Australian Grand Prix since joining Red Bull Racing.

This time 12 months ago, Verstappen was still part of the Toro Rosso driver line-up. It was another two months before he was upgraded to the senior team

Now the 19-year-old is keenly aware that the spotlight is firmly upon him in the 2017 season opener. Unsurprisingly he wants to get off to the best start he can.

“We always arrive in Australia a bit early due to the time difference," he said this week. "This way we have a bit longer to acclimatise."

"The first two or three days you struggle with jet lag a bit. But then it's fine because you are just really excited for the first race of the year.

“The first race is always exciting as you never really know where you are in terms of performance with the car because everything is so new.

"This is reflected in the paddock too. It’s a refreshing feeling.

"I can’t wait to feel the buzz of all the cars going out for the first practice and seeing the excitement on everyone’s face."

Ricciardo: 'awesome' to start season with home race

His team mate Daniel Ricciardo will be the star of the weekend as far as local media and fans are concerned. In some ways that helps take some of the pressure off Verstappen.

“Being Daniel’s home Grand Prix he obviously gets a lot of support which is very nice for him," Verstappen said.

“I enjoy going to Melbourne as it’s a cool city, nice environment and good weather so generally a great place to stay.

"I found some nice restaurants down by the Yarra River so whenever we have time I will head down there for some dinner."

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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.