The 2022 Sao Paolo GP was full of excitement and controversy and Max Verstappen was at the center of most of it. His race did not go off to an ideal start after he had to pit for a new front wing following his shunt with old rival Lewis Hamilton. Despite falling down to the last position, Verstappen climbed his way back to 6th. That is when things started to go downhill for the 2022 World Champion.
Verstappen has already secured this season’s World Championship and Red Bull has the Constructors’ Title in the bag. In the Milton-Keynes-based outfit, only Sergio Perez has something to fight for. The Mexican driver is in a close battle for P2 in the Drivers’ Championship against Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.
Perez wanted Verstappen to let him through in Sao Paolo because if he finished P6, he would be ahead of Leclerc going into the final round. Red Bull asked the Dutchman to let Perez pass but he straight up refused. This angered Perez and millions of fans around the world. The entire F1 community labeled Verstappen’s act as petty and uncalled for.
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Fans slam Max Verstappen on social media as he loses a chunk of Instagram followers
Immediately after the race was over, Red Bull boss team principal Christian Horner apologized to Perez for Verstappen’s actions. The Guadalajara-born driver did not take it kindly and replied with, “It just shows who he really is.”
Unfortunately for Verstappen, most fans agree with Checo. In the aftermath of the Sao Paolo GP, Verstappen lost a total of 52,699 followers on Instagram! This is a massive number especially because the 25-year-old recently became a two-time World Champion.
Horner insists that Verstappen and Perez have shaken hands, but most people think that this won’t be easily resolved. The Red Bull boss was adamant that Verstappen will help Perez in any way possible at the season finale in Abu Dhabi next weekend.
Sergio Perez and Charles Leclerc head into season finale level on points
The memories of Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton heading into the 2021 season finale level on points are still fresh in the mind of F1 fans. This year, it’s Perez and Leclerc who travel to Abu Dhabi with 290 points a piece, but it’s for second place.
Despite the battle being for P2, it is expected to be intense. Ferrari desperately want to hold on the second place in the Constructors’ Championship and they have to finish above both Mercedes cars for that to happen. If Perez is thrown into the mix on Sunday as Leclerc’s rival, it’s going to be a tricky evening for the Monegasque and whole of Scuderia Ferrari.
