text: Will Stevens has followed the lead of England's elite footballers and taken to using the world-class facilities at St George's Park to help him climb the Formula One ladder. Manor driver Stevens was introduced to St George's Park by Michael Johnson Performance, the training company founded by the four-time Olympic champion and which has a partnership with the Burton-based centre where all 24 England teams train ahead of international fixtures. The 23-year-old was a regular visitor last year as he looked to step up his fitness in preparation for a potential F1 drive, which came his way with now-defunct Caterham in the final race in Abu Dhabi. Will Stevens has been using the facilities at St George's Park to help him climb the Formula One ladder . Stevens has access to an exercise bike, treadmill and rowing machine, located in the altitude chamber . Stevens continued over the winter as he held talks with Manor prior to the South Yorkshire-based marque finally exiting administration in early March. Due to Stevens' grand prix commitments he has been unable to visit St George's Park as much as he would like these past few weeks, although he is planning a trip over the summer months. 'The facilities they have there are great, better than anywhere,' said Stevens. 'Last year I spent quite a lot of time there because I needed to get myself ready if I had the opportunity to step up into F1. The main entrance to St George's Park, the Football Association's £100m training complex . The Hydrotherapy suite has a main pool (background), ice bath (centre) and jacuzzi (foreground) 'This year is a lot different because we need to manage the schedule to keep up my energy levels, when to train hard and when not to. 'I'll probably go there during the break because obviously the German Grand Prix has gone. 'There is a lot longer break in the middle compared to what it would be normally, so I'll probably spend a week or so there. 'I'll have a fitness assessment for the first couple of days, and then after that I'll work on the areas where I need to improve. Stevens was a regular visitor last year as he looked to step up his fitness in preparation for a potential F1 drive . 'They've a heat chamber which is good and a really good underwater treadmill so you can do a lot more non-bearing stuff on your body. 'If you're training solidly for more than a week it's good to do that kind of stuff. 'If you are out running or whatever it's obviously a lot harder on your body, and you can train a lot longer over the duration of the day rather than a few hours.' Past use of the heat chamber will have a bearing for Stevens this weekend as he competes in the Bahrain Grand Prix. Although an evening/night race when temperatures will be in the mid 20s centigrade compared to searing day-time highs of 36, it will still be of benefit. The Manor driver is preparing to race in the Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday . 'Hydration is the number one thing. If you're not hydrated you can lose concentration,' added Stevens. 'Stuff like that is obviously something I need to keep on top of, which is why I've people here to help me to manage everything like that. 'I've spent the last three days in Dubai where the temperature was identical to here. 'Personally I much prefer being in the heat than the cold, so in terms of temperature I feel I won't have any issues at all.'
target: Manor driver Will Stevens has been using the facilities at St George's Park .
  The state-of-the-art centre is used by the senior England football team .
  Stevens is preparing to race in the Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday .