Why Max Verstappen is a top athlete

As far as I know, I have no childhood traumas, but the fact that there were always snickers about my equestrian sport still makes me angry sometimes. Try sitting on a horse for an hour and actually ride it. A dressage lesson or a jumping course. If you manage to get off without breaking a sweat and come through the next day painlessly, I'll treat you to champagne.

Max Verstappen undoubtedly has the millionfold version of this (just like his salary compared to mine, so he probably won't lose sleep over it), because many people don't consider motorsport a real sport. You sit and don't move, and the car does the work, that's the thought. Just like with horse riding (Max, I know it doesn't really matter to you, but I feel you a lot). Did you know that even the guys who take care of the tire change during the pit stop have their own personal trainer? What do you think, that they don't scrutinize the execution in a business where details matter (to make a car go a second faster, a team invests 50 million)? Of course not. Only the best are allowed near the cars. I'm just listing it all.

1. Being able to stay fully concentrated for one and a half to two hours (a moment of inattention can mean death).

2. G-forces up to the fifth power (so five times your own body weight). An F1 driver often has the pressure of 25 kilos on their neck. That's four times the weight of their head and helmet. You really need to have a bull's neck to carry that. Some drivers train with weights in their helmets.

3. Drivers lose up to three liters of fluid during a race. Because it can be up to 50 degrees Celsius in the car and the drivers can't dissipate heat with their bodies due to the suits and helmets, they lose an intense amount of fluid.

4. Heart rate up to 180, blood pressure 50 percent higher than normal

5. Unprecedented hand-eye coordination, playing chess on so many different boards at the same time. And being strategic (what are the others doing, when to pit, are my tires still good, can I turn on my DRS?) while knowing the circuit, taking the corners well, and handling the G-forces. If anyone still doubts the label of top sport, they should go karting once. If you get out bruised and can't put on your shirt the next day because of muscle pain, I hope you think of Max and Lewis again.