Revealed: The classic Drive to Survive scene that exposed Max Verstappen’s 2021 visibility problems

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen revealed last week that he has “struggled with visibility problems” ever since his crash with Mercedes rival Lewis Hamilton at the 2021 British Grand Prix at Silverstone.

But did an episode of Drive to Survive, Netflix’s hit F1 docuseries, reveal the first clues that all was not well with Verstappen as the 2021 season reached its crescendo?

Max Verstappen visibility issues unearthed by Drive to Survive?

Verstappen suffered a heavy accident on the opening lap of the 2021 British GP after contact with Hamilton at the Copse corner, one of several flashpoints between the pair as they battled for the title.

The Dutchman was taken to hospital for precautionary checks after a massive 51G impact, with his Red Bull team left incensed after Hamilton overcame a 10-second time penalty for causing a collision to win the race, reducing Verstappen’s lead in the Drivers’ standings to eight points.

Verstappen would eventually secure his maiden World Championship at the end of 2021 in the highly controversial season finale in Abu Dhabi, where the FIA race director’s failure to implement the Safety Car rules correctly saw him overtake Hamilton on the final lap of the race.

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Speaking to the Red Bulletin, Red Bull’s in-house media publication, last week, Verstappen revealed that he has been plagued by the after-effects of his crash at Silverstone.

And he added that the situation came to a head later that season at the United States Grand Prix in Austin, where he struggled with blurred vision as he withstood a late charge from Hamilton to win by 1.333 seconds – a pivotal victory in his first title-winning campaign.

He said: “Since my Silverstone crash, I’ve struggled with visibility problems, especially on undulating circuits or those with lots of advertising boards on the side of the track.

“In this race [Austin 2021], I wasn’t just fighting against Lewis, but also against blurred images.

“It was like driving a speedboat at 300 km/h! I’ve never said this before, but it was so bad for a few laps that I seriously considered turning the car off.

“The only thing that helped was to concentrate on my breathing with Lewis breathing down my neck. An important win that I desperately needed in the championship fight.”

Verstappen’s revelations came as a surprise to many in the F1 community, yet an unearthed scene from Season 4 of Drive to Survive first shone a light on the troubles the Dutch driver was experiencing in late 2021.

Shortly before qualifying at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, the penultimate round of that season, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner is seen in discussion with Verstappen in the garage, asking if his driver has “got that dizziness again” – heavily indicating that this was not the first time Verstappen had felt unwell.

The exchange went as follows:

Horner: “You alright? Have you got that dizziness again? Have you been drinking OK and hydrated?”

Verstappen: “Yeah.”

Horner: “You don’t think it’s the light?”

Verstappen: “Yeah, I don’t know. I don’t need to throw up but just feel it.”

Horner: “We’ll get John [Hammond, Red Bull team physiotherapist] to have a good look.”

Horner is then heard commenting over the action at the Jeddah street circuit, admitting that Verstappen’s condition was “a big concern” with the title fight hotting up.

He said: “We’ve got an opportunity to win this Championship, but Max is feeling really unwell. Particularly with where we are for the World Championship, it’s a big concern.”

“The one place that you don’t want to feel bad at is in a Formula 1 car, particularly on a street circuit the speed of Saudi.”

Verstappen went on to produce a spirited performance in qualifying, but ultimately crashed at the last corner of his final Q3 lap while on course to set a comfortable pole position.

After the session, Horner is seen in conversation in the Jeddah paddock with Verstappen’s father Jos, speculating that a move to a darker helmet visor could help his condition.

The conversation unfolded as follows:

Verstappen Sr: “You think it’s a good idea to have a look?”

Horner: “Yes. I think we need to check everything. And maybe look at the visor because I don’t know about the light. Maybe we go dark on the visor or… I don’t know.

Verstappen Sr: “Could be, yep.”

Horner: “But we need to get it fully checked over.”

Verstappen went on to finish second to Hamilton in the inaugural Jeddah F1 race, with the 2021 title protagonists leaving Saudi Arabia level on points ahead of the Championship decider in Abu Dhabi the following weekend.

Verstappen set pole position at Yas Marina, but lost the lead to Hamilton within moments of the start of the race.

The Red Bull driver attempted to retake the lead with a bold move on the opening lap, with Hamilton taking to the run-off area to maintain the position.

Hamilton had established a lead of 12 seconds, and looked on course to win a record-breaking eighth World Championship, at the time Williams driver Nicholas Latifi crashed to bring out the Safety Car with five laps remaining.

Red Bull and Verstappen took the opportunity to pit for fresh soft tyres, allowing him to pass Hamilton – on old hards – on the final lap of the race after the FIA’s race director Michael Masi allowed only the five lapped cars between the title protagonists on track to unlap themselves, thereby setting up a last-lap duel.

Verstappen promptly overtook Hamilton with the Mercedes driver, who was heard claiming the race had been “manipulated” over team radio, unable to regain the lead before the chequered flag.

Now 26, Verstappen has since gone on to cement his status as one of the greatest drivers in F1 history, winning 51 of the last 78 races and a further two World Championships at the time of writing.

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