Red Bull spoke to Verstappen and Perez before Miami GP: 'Keep it clean'

Verstappen had to start the Miami GP from ninth position on the grid after Charles Leclerc caused a late red flag during qualifying. This prevented the Dutchman from attacking Perez's pole time after he himself also made a mistake on his first flying lap.

Perez took full advantage of his teammate's mistake by clinching pole position. On Miami's street circuit, he had hoped to stay ahead of the two-time world champion, but Verstappen's brutal pace proved impossible to keep up with, even for the Mexican.

Where Verstappen won it from Perez

Verstappen made short work of the deficit by even closing the gap to Perez during his catch-up race, with many thinking the gap between them would increase throughout the race. Horner saw Verstappen mainly making the difference in the first sector. "Max was outstanding in that sector," he stated, according to Motorsport.com.

Red Bull Racing tried to avoid a confrontation on track, but in the end, Verstappen could not build a safe lead on his very old set of hard tyres. As a result, he had to outsmart Perez on the track, a scenario the team discussed with both drivers before the race.

In doing so, Horner told Verstappen and Perez that they were free to race, but they had to keep it clean and show respect to each other and the team. "I felt they did that. They raced firmly but fairly, and they gave each other enough space and respect," the Red Bull team boss said.