Max Verstappen has revealed that he still suffers from blurred vision following his high-speed crash with Lewis Hamilton during the 2021 British Grand Prix at Silverstone.
Verstappen and Hamilton went wheel-to-wheel on multiple occasions in 2021 and had numerous incidents where they came together.
During the opening exchanges of that year’s British GP at Silverstone, the two Formula 1 title challengers came together at Copse corner with Hamilton making an ill-judged move on the inside, tagging Verstappen’s Red Bull.
The Dutchman suffered a 51G impact as a result and required observation at the hospital following the incident and the Red Bull driver recently revealed he still has aftereffects from the incident.
“Since my Silverstone crash, I’ve been struggling with vision problems, especially on bumpy tracks or those with many advertising boards along the track,” Verstappen said on the official Red Bull website.
Hamilton was deemed to be at fault for the incident by the race stewards and was subsequently issued with a 10-second penalty.
Red Bull, however, felt the punishment wasn’t severe enough and went to extreme lengths to prove that was the case.
The Milton Keynes-based Formula 1 outfit sent then-Test Driver Alex Albon to recreate Hamilton’s driving line through Copse and had Sergio Perez doing the same on the simulator.
The FIA eventually threw out Red Bull’s Right of Review request and Mercedes retaliated by claiming Red Bull’s management team was deliberately trying to question Hamilton’s sporting behaviour.
Three years on, Verstappen went on to explain he considered retiring during the 2021 United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas, two months after the Silverstone crash.
“In this race, I was not only fighting against Lewis but also against blurred images,” he said.
“It was like driving a speedboat at 300kph. I’ve never mentioned this before, but for a few laps, it was so bad that I seriously considered parking the car.
“The only thing that helped was focusing on my breathing while I had Lewis right behind me. It was an important victory that I desperately needed in the championship fight.”
Despite the safety advancements in modern Formula 1, Verstappen’s story is of paramount importance, serving as a potent reminder that motorsport always carries danger in its wake.
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