British F1 commentator Martin Brundle has claimed that Max Verstappen’s team was shocked to see Red Bull Racing teammate Sergio Perez match the Dutchman’s pace at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix this past weekend. The Mexican eventually edged Verstappen by 5.355 seconds to claim his fifth F1 win.
Perez seemed comfortable throughout the weekend as he not only claimed pole but also managed the race well. Even though there was a safety car period, the 33-year-old managed to keep Verstappen behind him with ease.
While Perez won the race, it was Verstappen who yet emerged with the lead in the championship by one point. The 25-year-old brilliantly clinched the fastest lap of the race on the very last lap to claim the extra point.
Martin Brundle explains why Team Verstappen was left annoyed
Martin Brundle provided a detailed analysis of why he believes Max Verstappen‘s team were left annoyed after a disappointing Saudi Arabian Grand Prix weekend. The 25-year-old’s issues began during qualifying.
Verstappen qualified way down in 15th after he couldn’t set a lap time in Q2 due to a driveshaft issue. Since he qualified way down the order, it was all about damage limitation for the Dutchman. And Verstappen did that perfectly.
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He finished just behind Perez, who seems to be his primary challenger for the championship this season. However, since the 25-year-old did not have the opportunity to fight for the win because of Red Bull Racing’s reliability issues, Brundle believes that the Verstappen camp would be annoyed.
“Team Verstappen were perhaps surprised that Perez could match their pace. And they were no doubt annoyed that it was ultimately the qualifying car issue which prevented Max from setting a new record of 16 victories in 21 races,” he explained.
Verstappen vs Perez battle also took over to team radio
The Max Verstappen vs Sergio Perez battle also carried over to the team radio this past weekend. Since Perez was way clear of Verstappen in the Saudi Arabian GP, the Dutchman was keen to claim the fastest lap point.
Hence, Verstappen took to the team radio and asked his engineer what was the fastest lap. Since Perez had already claimed the fastest lap, the engineer told Verstappen that the fastest lap was not a concern for the team.
However, Verstappen was quick to state that it mattered to him though. And as it so happened, the flying Dutchman claimed the fastest lap on the final lap of the race.
Verstappen: “What is the fastest lap?”
GP: “We are not concerned with that”
Verstappen: “But I am” pic.twitter.com/xSw1HhpQOO
— The Nandolorian (@ScrewderiaF1) March 19, 2023
In the process, he claimed that extra point and also kept the lead in the championship. When Perez understood that Verstappen had claimed the fastest lap, the two also seemed to have an argument in the cool-down room.
Perez asked Verstappen, “Weren’t you asked to keep the pace”? In reply, Verstappen said, “Yeah. But I asked what the fastest lap was in the end. And it was a tenth faster than that”.
