The images from the previous weekend showed Doohan with visible difficulties getting out of his car after completing the Japanese Grand Prix, where he finished 15th. He was seen receiving assistance from an Alpine engineer and Haas driver, Esteban Ocon. The video quickly went viral and raised concerns among fans about the time it took him to exit the vehicle.
This Thursday, at the Sakhir circuit, Doohan participated in the traditional press conference before the start of official activities. There, the Australian driver explained how he physically went through the previous weekend: "On Friday, I was in a bit of pain. On Saturday, I felt worse, and on Sunday even worse. I'd say that I felt pain from the beginning of the race, not necessarily toward the end, but it definitely helps with the adrenaline. I think it's natural with the derivation and the position. So a couple of days of rest, Monday, Tuesday, and obviously yesterday, were very necessary."
Then, he reassured by stating: "I'm already at 100%, I'm fully recovered.Thanks for caring." The statement came amid questions from journalists, in a media round he shared with Italian Kimi Antonelli from Mercedes, and Spanish Carlos Sainz Jr from Williams.
Already focused on what's coming, Doohan showed enthusiasm for the new challenge: "I'm really looking forward to having a clean weekend, to get everything in order. Yes, this week we have the perfect opportunity to have a full race weekend again. And I'm really looking forward to going back to Bahrain, as already mentioned. Today we tested in a place where I think it was 25 degrees more. So it's going to be very different, and the balance, the feeling, and the grip of the car are going to be terrible."
Meanwhile, in a reflective tone, he added: "To be honest, every weekend has had its advantages and positive aspects, which have been the most important. And I think that as long as you learn from setbacks, the things you can improve, how to approach and digest them, you can ensure where those positive aspects come from and how to replicate them. And the most important thing next weekend is to organize everything, to be calm from start to finish. I'm still improving and getting closer and closer, so we can start getting that complete package."
Doohan's crash in practice
The incident in Japan occurred when Doohan lost control of the Alpine A525 in turn 1 by leaving the DRS on, which caused a strong impact against the tire barriers. The collision forced the activity to be interrupted for about twenty minutes.
