Sainz reveals bizarre consequences of appendicitis: 'Could have been dead'

F1 News

Blind intestinal infection in Saudi Arabia could have proved fatal to Sainz
19 June at 14:00
Last update 19 June at 14:03
  • Jeroen Immink

Carlos Sainz has reflected extensively on his appendicitis. The Spaniard had to miss out on the Saudi Arabia Grand Prix due to surgery. Sainz has since revealed some of the bizarre details that could have proved fatal to him.

It could have been a story for a good film. Sainz, who had to watch the race in Saudi Arabia from the pit box, only to walk away with the win in Melbourne just two weeks later. As a result, the three-time Grand Prix winner, who is in his final season with Ferrari, has put himself well in the spotlight with all the other Formula 1 teams.

Sainz talks about intense period between Saudi Arabia and Australia

Yet Sainz has crawled through the eye of the needle in Saudi Arabia. The 29-year-old Spaniard reveals in the Nude Project podcast that he was not far from death. "I was completely exhausted, I hardly ate anything. I had no energy and was sweating a lot more than usual. The free practice sessions were the worst of my whole career," Sainz reveals. "Then I went to the hospital and told them I had felt like this for two days. They declared me crazy. If my appendix had burst, I could have died." In the end, Oliver Bearman got into the SF-24 and finished handsomely seventh in his GP debut.

This article was written in collaboration with Sophia Crothall.