The battle for the fastest lap in the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix has created a hostile environment in the Red Bull camp. Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen were involved in a thrilling battle that ended in controversy. Both drivers were told to hold back on the fastest lap attempt; while Perez followed the team’s advice, Verstappen defied it, clocking in the fastest lap and claiming his spot on top of the board.
Perez had been vocal about his disappointments, However, Christian Horner’s revelation in a post-race interview only sounded alarm bells within the team.
Max Verstappen robbed Sergio Perez
Verstappen’s race for the one point was well-calculated. The champion had even radioed in to ask his team the same. When advised by the pit wall to give it up, Verstappen took matters into his own hands. Perez criticized his team for robbing him of the attempt, asking them to better scrutinize the information at hand.
Horner contradicted his statements. With an ‘it is what it is’ mentality, he defended Verstappen. “I think we came to the conclusion that it [was] the last lap. If he’s going to go, he’s going to go.”
In response to Perez’s lashing out, Horner also clears the air; claiming that both his drivers were given the same information. “Checo had the fastest lap at that point. He asked what it was, so it was obvious why he was asking.”
First time we have had a 1-2, two races in a row since 2009 🤯 pic.twitter.com/wvpknfBTp5
— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) March 20, 2023
Turning the tables on Perez, Horner added, “He knew that Max was going to have a crack at it, and Checo gave it up after the first couple of turns.”
Verstappen warns Red Bull
In a disappointing turn of events, a driveshaft malfunction caused Max Verstappen to crash out in Q2 during the qualifying round, forcing him to start the race in P15. However, the tenacious Dutch driver made a remarkable comeback, slicing through the pack to finish second,
P15 ⏩ P2 ➕ Driver of the Day 🏆 Add another mighty comeback to the list 📝 pic.twitter.com/0I0iUlKTb7
— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) March 19, 2023
Despite the team’s impressive performance, Verstappen remained dissatisfied with his weekend, emphasizing the need for reliability and consistency with speed. When asked about Red Bull’s prospects of maintaining its lead over the competition, Verstappen expressed optimism but acknowledged that maintaining a competitive edge means avoiding mechanical misfortunes and other issues.
Even Checo’s escape was on point 🏃😆 pic.twitter.com/fe6L76y1gb
— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) March 19, 2023
Verstappen said, “Of course, I recovered to second which is good, and in general the whole feeling in the team, everyone is happy, but personally I’m not happy, because I’m not here to be second.”
As the environment at Red Bull sees a shift very early in the season, it is important for the team to prevent a civil war in order for a smooth sailing cruise to the top of the leaderboard.
