Max Verstappen avoided explaining how he picked up injuries to his finger and hand after qualifying on pole for the British Grand Prix.
The Red Bull racer went quicker than Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to take the front grid slot for Sunday's race at Silverstone. Afterwards, he joined the McLaren pair in the usual post-session press conference. And it did not go unnoticed that Verstappen was wearing a bandage on his right hand. Asked about it, he was not willing to give too much away.
"Yeah, it looks a bit interesting, right? But yeah, it's just a hand injury," he told reporters including Mirror Sport, showing off his bandaged hand as he spoke.
But when probed further on the cause of the injury, he avoided giving a direct answer. He simply replied: "Yeah, that's why I said it looks quite interesting.
"But yeah, I injured my finger – that's not making it any better – injured my finger and my hand at the same time. But it's fine. When I'm driving, it's okay."
So the injury is not likely to hamper the Dutchman's bid for a sixth-straight Formula 1 victory at Silverstone on Sunday. His Red Bull teammate, meanwhile, has left himself with yet another rescue mission.
Sergio Perez failed to make it out of Q1 after nine minutes sat at the end of the pit lane during a red flag, which meant his tyres were cold and devoid of grip. So while he skated around the track, most others went quicker and he was condemned to 15th place on the grid after Valtteri Bottas was disqualified.
"The red flag lasted longer than we predicted initially, that didn't help the temperature of the tyre," he said. "It's just a shame to lose out because we had a great Friday and the race pace was looking really good. Starting from the back, it's going to be another race where we try to minimise the damage.
"In these conditions is where I struggle the most with the car. My issues with the car become more apparent in the changeable conditions. So I think it's something that, as a group, we need to get on top of and understand what we are able to do better. Simple as that."
