A collage of F1 drivers Carlos Sainz, Valtteri Bottas, and Sergio Perez. Eric Alonso/ Clive Mason/Bryn Lennon/Getty Images The 2022 F1 Singapore Grand Prix is taking place from September 30 to October 2. Daily temperatures in Singapore hover around 86 degrees Fahrenheit.
Some drivers are getting ready for the heat of the Marina Bay Street Circuit by training in saunas. The F1 Singapore Grand Prix returns this weekend after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic. From September 30 to October 2, the country is shutting down public streets in the city center and turning them into the glittering Marina Bay Street Circuit.
Although the race is held at night, it’s no secret that the conditions of the Singapore race are grueling. It’s hot, it’s humid, and the track is notoriously bumpy. As a result, F1 drivers need to tweak their training regimes to prepare for Singapore’s weather.
For many of them, that means spending time in saunas. In the lead-up to the race, Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz shared an Instagram video of himself riding an exercise bike in a sauna, with the caption: “Extreme situations call for extreme measures… Getting ready for Singapore!!” A post shared by Carlos Sainz (@carlossainz55) The Ferrari team takes heat training seriously: Sainz’s teammate, Charles Leclerc, told local newspaper The Straits Times at a media event on Wednesday that they’ve been “spending a lot of time in saunas, even during the summer, at very high temperatures. “One of the biggest challenges F1 drivers face in Singapore is the physical impact of losing up to 3 kilograms, or 6.
6 pounds, of water weight over the course of the race. “It’s no secret that this place is a bit of an oven for all of us… If you survive Singapore, you’re fit for anywhere else in F1,” Sainz told local newspaper Today during a press conference on Thursday. Ahead of Sunday’s race, Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas also took to sitting in a sauna — with the temperature turned up to 100 degrees Celsius, or 212 degrees Fahrenheit — in nothing but a reindeer antler hat.
“Some call it heat training but for others it’s just a daily ritual,” he wrote on Instagram, along with an emoji of the Singaporean flag and Finnish flag. A post shared by Valtteri Bottas (@valtteribottas) Likewise, Red Bull’s Sergio Pérez shared an Instagram compilation of his training routine for Singapore, which includes pedaling a stationary bike and weightlifting in a sauna. “Singapore mood on! Getting ready for next week!” Pérez wrote in his caption, together with an emoji of a flexed bicep.
A post shared by Checo Pérez (@schecoperez) Singapore, which is one degree north of the equator, has an average humidity of 83. 9%, per data from the Meteorological Service of Singapore. The average daily temperature for October is around 30 degrees Celsius, or 86 degrees Fahrenheit.
“Look at how many sweaty people are in the paddock walking around — you can imagine how we feel in the cockpit,” AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly told Today. Read the original article on Insider.
From: insider
URL: https://www.insider.com/f1-drivers-singaore-sauna-prepare-racing-hot-weather-2022-9
