Norris raced despite illness - “didn’t eat for two days, lost 3.5kg”
The McLaren driver didn’t turn up to Thursday’s media day due to food poisoning but drove well on Friday and Saturday. His race on Sunday saw him punished with a five-second penalty for colliding with Charles Leclerc, before he retired with an electrical problem.
Norris detailed how awful he felt:“I was in a bad way. I’m a bit better [on Sunday].
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“I didn’t eat for two days, I didn’t drink for two days. I lost 3.5kg. I really struggled a lot.
“Everyone thought I was fine after Friday because I just did a good job but it was quite the opposite.”
Norris explained driving in the grand prix while ill: “I did start to struggle a bit physically, but then my race was over.
“I’m OK, I’m getting better every day, it’s just the last day took its toll on me.
“I could have a bit of food in me before the race, I could get some fluids in me which is probably the most important thing on such a hot day,
“I’m sure if I didn’t break down and I made the end of the race I’d be in quite a bad condition.
“There was just so much going on in my brain [on Friday]. I wasn’t getting out of the way for people very well.
“Just small things. I don’t think it cost me anything today, we were just very, very slow.
“Maybe on Friday in qualifying there were some little mistakes and just judgements, but I always felt when I was in the car and on my lap, especially a qualifying lap, I could do what I needed to do.
“But longevity [was difficult] by the end of the sprint race, I was in very bad condition.”
Norris is seventh in the F1 standings with one race remaining in 2022.
