Red Bull ace Max Verstappen reveals final preparations ahead of Australian Grand Prix

Formula One returns this weekend with the season opening race in Melbourne, Australia.

And many of the drivers are undergoing their final preperations ahead of the race.

And Dutchman Verstappen has been sweating it out in the gym to ensure his body is in peak condition to endure the demands of a Formula One car.

Verstappen can be seen doing some gruelling sit-ups with a medicine ball.

“Getting that final work in before I can jump in the car again #keeppushing #ausgp,” he wrote on Insagram.

Along with Mercedes and Ferrari, Red Bull looked impressive during testing in Barcelona and many are expecting there to be a three-way tussle for the championship this season.

And getting a good start in Melbourne will be vital for Red Bull but Verstappen is confident his team can be competative this season.

“Albert Park is not the easiest track to overtake on, we will try our best but the straights are not quite long enough and a lot of the corners leading to the straights are 90 degree turns, and this makes it hard to set-up a pass,” he said ahead of the opening race.

“Turns 11 and 12 are the fastest corners and really cool to drive, especially in qualifying, with low fuel, in sixth or seventh gear. I think it is about 270 kilometres per hour.

“The trees around the circuit sometimes make your braking markers hard to spot with shadows, it's quite normal on a street circuit but makes it more challenging for us to get it right.

“We are hoping to have made a large step forward this year and be competitive from the start, to have a fast car from race one and continue for the rest of the season would be great.”