©McLaren
Lando Norris says the physical pain that surfaced in Austria had eased considerably in Hungary and will likely have subsided for this weekend's British Grand Prix at Silverstone.
Norris raced to a career-first podium in the opening round of the 2020 season in Austria, but a week later at the Red Bull Ring the McLaren driver was forced to take painkillers to alleviate an acute bout of pain felt in the chest area.
A short trip back to the UK and a visit to his physician revealed the source of his agony as being a case of bruising induced by his return to the cockpit after a lengthy hiatus.
Norris already felt better in Hungary and isn't anticipating any issues at Silverstone this weekend.
"Hungary was much better already than the Red Bull Ring race – round two," Norris said.
"There, I was in a pretty bad way. I couldn’t drive without being on the painkillers at all, so that was a bit of a lifesaver from my end in just letting me get out on track and drive.
"By the time we went to Hungary it was already better, and obviously I went back and saw the specialist and the doctors and everyone and we figured out a bit more what the problem was.
"It wasn’t something that we could just fix. It’s something that we think is going to take time. Even those few days of time between the two race weekends, I felt better and I did FP3 with no painkillers and I was fine, and I performed well and so on."
However, Norris wasn't yet relieved as drivers undergo more strain in qualifying and on race day.
"My only worry was going into the race or qualifying when you have the highest brake pressure, and then the race when it’s just the longevity of it that something could arise," he added.
"It wasn’t that I couldn’t drive, it was just something I was a bit more hesitant about thinking what happens if it does come up in the race? Then I might struggle.
"So I was fine from my side and from what I knew, but I think it’s just something that will take a bit of time to get better from my side, because it was just more bruising, basically.
"It was just pure bruising from driving a Formula 1 car having not driven one for so long. So I should be fine come Silverstone."
Gallery: The beautiful wives and girlfriends of F1 drivers
Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter
Formula 1 returns to Imola this weekend after a two-year absence following last year’s cancellation.…
Charles Leclerc says he was not aware of any plan to replace his long-standing race…
The Formula 1 community and its drivers came together on the grid on Thursday afternoon…
Formula 1 design legend Adrian Newey is poised for a new chapter, but all signs…
With Alex Albon now locked in for the foreseeable future, Williams has shifted its focus…
Nico Hulkenberg has called into question Kevin Magnussen’s claim that he deliberately transgressed track limits…