Max Verstappen knew he was a four-time world champion weeks before the final race in Abu Dhabi, celebrating under the bright lights of the Las Vegas Strip.
However, even when the Red Bull driver started his F1 journey in 2015, it would have been hard to imagine races taking place in Nevada and the Middle East just two weeks apart.
Even more bizarrely, they were split by a Sprint Race weekend in Qatar, putting immense pressure on thousands of personnel who had to undertake a gruelling triple-header that spanned 12 time zones at the end of the longest season in Formula 1 history.
Verstappen suggested drivers would get ill such are the demands of the Formula 1 calendar, and that came to pass when Kevin Magnussen had to sit out of the race in Sao Paulo and Nico Hulkenberg was withdrawn from the media day in Qatar due to sickness.
In an interview with Blick, the Dutchman explained his feelings towards the current calendar.
He echoed the thoughts of Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton, who have both previously complained about the pressure everyone associated with the sport is under.
Verstappen was asked about the current state of the Formula 1 schedule which contains 24 Grand Prix and six Sprint Races.
When it was put to him that these are issues that previously forced Hamilton and Alonso to consider quitting the sport, he said: “What can we do? We can only ask the Formula 1 management to stop this madness.
“But you know yourself that the drivers have always been the weakest link in the chain for years.”
It’s not a problem that’s going to get any easier in the future, with F1 already considering new destinations to travel to.
Thailand has a strong chance of hosting an F1 race, while the likes of South Korea, Rwanda, South Africa and Argentina would all like to get in on the action.
Zandvoort’s contract ends in 2026, and while the Madrid Grand Prix joins the calendar that year, it could be the last time Barcelona hosts a race with its contract set to expire.
Alonso threatened to leave F1 in 2017 should the calendar grow to the point it’s reached today, saying, via The Guardian: “I started when the calendar was 16 races, plus the tests, and now we keep increasing the races year after year.
“We are in a number that is quite demanding already with the life you have between the preparation, the sponsor events, the tests, the commitments, plus 20 or 21 races. I think it’s already enough.
“I consider that a good quality of life is more important than more seasons in F1. If the calendar stays between 20 and 21 races, I would be happy to continue but it if increases it is not for me.”
Alonso reiterated at the time that Hamilton agreed with his point of view and speaking two years later at the United States Grand Prix, the Brit said: “I already find 21 hard.
“When I was young, I couldn’t get enough of the races. But when you work in a team and see for how long the people are separated from their families, they need a balance.
“The season is already too long now.”
Both drivers are still going strong, with Hamilton looking forward to a new challenge at Ferrari this season.
And while they travel is relative comfort between tricky triple headers, the majority of the staff working for their teams do not.
Changes to the calendar are needed to smoothline the change in timezones and the distances travelled, but F1 is in no mood to slow down their quest to dominate the globe with interest growing every year.
