The FIA’s swear police would be having a field day. “S---,” exclaims Zak Brown as he dumps a forehand into the net during an early morning game of tennis with the Telegraph at Melbourne’s national tennis centre on Friday.

Verstappen and his Red Bull crew managed to turn their weekend around with some hard work overnight, finding pace out of nowhere to put himself right up toward the head of the field and ready to punish any mistakes from his rivals.