MELBOURNE – Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz admitted on March 23 that he could barely believe he was on the front row of the Australian Grand Prix just two weeks after surgery.

The Spaniard pulled out of the last race in Saudi Arabia earlier in March to have an operation for appendicitis and spent the next 10 days in recovery.

He tentatively returned on March 22 for opening practice in Melbourne, unsure how his body would cope with the g-forces of high-speed racing.

But he persevered and will start second alongside Red Bull’s world champion Max Verstappen on March 24, having been disappointed to miss pole position after being fastest in Q1 and Q2 qualifying.

“I was almost not believing it, especially after how tough it’s been,” Sainz said. “I’m very happy to be challenging the Red Bulls this weekend.

“I was a bit rusty at the beginning yesterday but then I got up to speed and I could finally find the pace and feeling good with a car.

“I’m not going to lie, I’m not in my most comfortable state when I’m driving out there, but I can get it done. A lot of discomfort and weird feelings but no pain, so it allows me to push flat out.”

Williams driver Alex Albon also suffered from appendicitis in 2022 and Sainz sought him out for advice on what to expect when he returned to racing.

“I feel like it’s exactly what Alex told me when he got his appendix removed,” he added.

“With the g-force and everything, on the inside, it just feels like everything is moving more than normal... you need some confidence to brace the core and the body as you’re used to do, but you get used to it.

“There is no pain, there is nothing to worry about. It’s just a weird feeling that you have to get used to while driving.”

Sainz is leaving Ferrari at the end of the season to make way for seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, who will leave Mercedes.

Verstappen, who won the opening race of the season in Bahrain as well as in Saudi Arabia, said he is “very satisfied” after clinching a third straight pole as the flying Dutchman targets a record-equalling 10th consecutive win.

His Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez qualified third but will start sixth after stewards imposed a three-place grid penalty for impeding Haas’ Nico Hulkenberg in the first session of qualifying.

That promoted both McLaren drivers, with Lando Norris to start third and Oscar Piastri fifth behind Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in fourth.

“Very happy because so far this weekend it has been a bit tough to find a good balance in the car,” said Verstappen, who is looking to repeat his feat from last season when he started first and won a chaotic race in Melbourne.

“And even throughout qualifying in Q1 and Q2 I didn’t really feel I could be fighting for pole. But then we made some little tickles on the car and that seemed to help me in Q3 to really push it to the limit.

“Obviously things can improve, but overall very satisfied with the performance.”

Mercedes endured their worst qualifying session of the season, leaving Hamilton crushed and team boss Toto Wolff seeing no hope of catching Red Bull in the short term.

Hamilton qualified 11th, his worst result at Albert Park since 2010, while George Russell was seventh.

Hamilton said there was a lot of problems with his car, while Wolff gave a gloomy assessment of their situation.

“I think we have a car that’s difficult,” said Wolff. “It’s the whole interaction of aerodynamics and mechanical and the tyres.

“It’s never a single topic. But we are going to just keep our heads down and push through this.

“I think it’s an illusion to go closer to Red Bull in the short term, but I still have to believe that there is more in this car.” AFP, REUTERS