Verstappen hits back at Russell over Sepang heat

Russell wants the FIA to free up cooling vest development. Verstappen, on pole, says he does not need one and that drivers simply have to train for the heat.

Max Verstappen has pushed back at George Russell's complaints about Sepang's extreme heat and Mercedes' refusal to develop a better cooling vest under the budget cap.

Russell had argued that the FIA should intervene.

"The FIA should intervene and allow us to develop them outside the budget cap," he said.

Polesitter Verstappen, however, told De Telegraaf that he does not intend to use the cooling vest at all.

"I don't need it," he said on Saturday.

Russell had compared the conditions to a sauna, prompting Verstappen to fire back.

"Well, I find a Finnish sauna at 85 degrees a lot hotter," the Dutchman smiled.

"You shouldn't make a fuss. Yes, it is hot, but that's part of it."

"You have to train for that."

Verstappen said he had specifically adapted his training after struggling more with heat as a teenager.

"I started training more in the heat, such as in the sauna and a steam room, so that I can handle the sweating better and the fact that your head gets very hot," he said.

"Maybe I should take him to the sauna a few times."

1996 world champion Damon Hill nevertheless expects Sunday's race to be brutal.

"These cars are demanding to drive, and the humidity saps a lot of energy during a race," he told La Gazzetta dello Sport.

"I think we could end up in a situation similar to what we experienced in Qatar in 2023, when it was really, really hot on the track."

Related: Extreme tyre wear leaves Sepang race wide open

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Leopold Pleijsier founded F1-Fansite.com in 2001 and has followed Formula 1 since the early 1980s. He writes about daily F1 news, race weekends, drivers and the sport’s history.

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