Copyright Sports Illustrated
As the Formula 1 2025 Drivers' Championship heats up, with Lando Norris a point ahead of McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri, who has admitted he finds it 'hard' to drive fast currently, fans are glued to their seats. Max Verstappen sits third and is slowly but surely catching up with the McLaren duo in what might become a three-way title battle between the two papaya cars and the Red Bull. But there is one face that sadly will not be able to attend F1's next race. Natalie Pinkham's neck surgery complications mean her Brazil trip is canceled In a post made on Instagram, Sky F1 host Natalie Pinkham admitted that despite wanting and planning to attend the Brazilian Grand Prix, her struggles following neck surgery have been more serious than expected. "Hello friends… I had hoped to be on a flight to Brazil yesterday, but the last couple of months have been trickier than I expected following neck surgery - and I am not there just yet…. Huge thanks to the #skyf1 team and the wider company for their incredible support." Part of Pinkham's Instagram post The 48-year-old has not made an appearance on Sky Sports F1 since her lead presenting role at the Italian Grand Prix, where soon after she revealed she would 'keep fans posted' on the planned neck surgery she was undergoing. The post details multiple recovery stages for Pinkham, including one in which she is seen wearing a neck brace. Over 30,000 fans have liked the post at the time of writing, with rapper Saweetie's 'Get It Girl' inclusion as the featured song on the post lightening the mood as to what is a serious situation for Pinkham and her family. Fellow pundit Jenson Button will also be absent, as he puts an end to what has been a legendary racing career with the conclusion of his World Endurance Championship chapter in the competition's final race in Bahrain. Many fans will remember Button for his legendary title win in 2009 with start-up team Brawn GP, and his spell as the teammate of Lewis Hamilton at McLaren. This weekend's Brazilian Grand Prix could be choc-full of drama, with Zak Brown stating that both McLarens are playing 'offense, not defense', and that if a situation similar to 2007 arises, where Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton fought so intensely that neither ended up winning the title, he would take that over favoring either Norris or Piastri.
