David Croft Believes Sergio Perez Didn’t Put “That Level of Effort” to Improve His Skills to Beat Max Verstappen for the Title

Sky Sports commentator David Croft has recently been full of praise for Max Verstappen for his extraordinary ability in the world of racing. Be it a simulation, or real life, the Dutchman’s sheer tendency to always improve his skills has impressed Croft immensely. At the same time, Croft believes that no driver in the world would put that much effort into constantly improving himself. One of them, according to him is Sergio Perez, who wanted to beat his teammate for the world title.

Sergio Perez had a brilliant start to the season. With two wins in the first four races, he was on level with Verstappen in terms of number of Grand Prix victories. However, as the season progressed it was clear who the better driver was. Now in the mid-season break, Verstappen is 125 points ahead of Perez.

Consequently, Croft has arrived at his conclusion that something like Verstappen’s consistency can’t be achieved without lifting the bar, which Perez seemingly lacks.

Croft on Perez’s criticism against Max Verstappen

Sky Sports’ David Croft recently opened up on Perez and his ability to drive at a top level alongside Verstappen. According to him, Perez doesn’t put a 100% effort in bettering himself.

Adding to this, the Briton said in Sky Sports F1‘s mid-season review, “If Checo wants to beat him, go put in the effort in. And I don’t think he’s putting that level of effort into trying to beat Max Verstappen.”

Following this, he urged the Guadalajara-born driver to raise his bar in order to challenge Verstappen. Like many others, Croft too feels that aiming for the championship while being Verstappen’s teammate was a mistake on Perez’s part.

Croft agreed with Marko on Perez’s capabilities

Red Bull’s chief advisor Helmut Marko is of the opinion that Sergio Perez needed to let go of his title ambitions. According to Marko, Perez’s downfall this season started when he began dreaming about dethroning Max Verstappen.

Marko added that, the 33-year-old is well suited to play second fiddle to Verstappen. Challenging for the title, however, is a long shot. Even David Croft in his Sky Sports F1 opinion panel agreed with him.

Amid all these, Perez sought help from a psychologist to help cope with his slump in form. He claimed that he needed to maintain calmness in order to get back to his best. Admittedly, in the last two races leading up to the summer break, Perez has made significant improvements to his performance.