Max Verstappen “Broke” His Old Teammates, But Can “Tough Operator” Sergio Pérez Survive? Christian Horner Shares His Hot Take

Max Verstappen has been in a class of his own for the past few seasons, dominating the entire field as well as his teammate Sergio Perez. Dax Randall Shepherd recently spoke to Red Bull team principal Christian Horner on his podcast, Eff Won with DRS, about the daunting job any driver has when they are the Dutchman’s teammate.

Shepherd claimed that he wouldn’t want any of his favorite drivers to take on the role of Verstappen’s teammate simply because he does not want to see them get beaten day after day. He explained that the role of the second driver at Red Bull is a thankless job and he does not wish it upon anyone.

VERSTAPPEN’S POINTS LEAD OVER PEREZ (266 PTS) IS NOW BIGGER THAN VETTEL’S ENTIRE POINTS TOTAL WHEN HE WON THE CHAMPIONSHIP IN 2010 (256 PTS) there are levels to this🐐🐐🐐🔥🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/b42scZ9jCG

— RedBull PowerUnit (@RedBullPU1) November 7, 2023

Horner seemed to agree with Shepherd’s opinions and explained that Verstappen is a generational talent. The Red Bull team principal said, “It’s just like driving next to Terminator.” The Briton also went on to speak about everything that Verstappen has achieved at such a young age as well as the effect he has on his teammates.

Pointing out Verstappen’s domination over his teammates, Horner said, “It’s so destroying. He broke the young teammates that he had come in.” Horner explained that the main reason why they brought Perez in to partner Verstappen was because of the huge amount of experience that the Mexican brought along with him.

Christian Horner praises Sergio Perez for his “mental resilience“

Christian Horner shed light on the initial impression made by Sergio Perez and his extreme resilience in the face of adversity. Horner said, “You know, Checo brought a bunch of experience and he’s a tough, tough operator. He’s got mental resilience.”

Horner also explained how Perez has always been a tough racer despite lacking a bit in qualifying. The 49-year-old admitted that Perez has been instrumental for Red Bull in achieving everything they have done so far and that he has done an excellent job as the teammate of a generational talent like Max Verstappen.

📰: Christian Horner responds to the contrasting results of Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez in Mexico City.#F1#MexicoGP

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— F1 Naija (@f1_naija) October 29, 2023

Horner then used the examples of legendary drivers such as Schumacher and Senna and what their teammates had to go through. He also points out that they were all capable drivers and yet were destroyed by their superior teammates.

Therefore, Horner believes that the biggest mistake that Perez can make is to compare himself with Verstappen. Instead, Horner believes that what Perez needs to do is to forget about his teammate, put his head down, and be the best that he can be.