F1 News
Criticism toward Perez unfair? “Red Bull has tried their best”
Anyone who has been following the 2024 F1 season knows that Sergio Perez' performance in Red Bull Racing this year has left much to be desired, particularly when the driver in the other Red Bull car clinched the championship with two race weekends to go. It has been speculated that maybe Red Bull has dedicated themselves to Verstappen alone and have left 'Checo' to fend for himself in the temperamental RB20. Verstappen himself shares his thoughts on the Mexican driver's situation.
277 points is the gap between Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez in the points each has hauled. If the difference was half that, Red Bull Racing would have secured their third Constructor's championship in a row. However, the Mexican driver has left many points on the table this season, which have crippled the Austrian's team's chances to continue on their title winning streak. In fact, it is believed that Perez will be axed from Red Bull after the post 2024 Red Bull driver evaluation meeting set to take place on the Monday following the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
Is the criticism Perez is facing unfair?
Verstappen was asked why was Perez struggling so much during the FIA Driver's Conference in Yas Marina, to which he replied: "it's very difficult to pinpoint that. Our car from the start, of course, has not been the easiest to drive. We were still, of course, dominant in the beginning, but then I think with some upgrades on the car, it made it even more difficult to drive", opened the Dutchman, backing Perez' statements that Red Bull went in the wrong direction with the upgrades after the first seven races.
"Of course, also for me, but I think even more for Checo for his driving style", added Verstappen before taking into account the other teams' development pace and also Perez' poor qualifying performance. "When others are closing up, every little detail makes a massive difference in results or where you qualify. Because if you then don't qualify well, you're in the middle of the pack, things can go wrong".
Verstappen refrained from giving out theories as to why Perez has been struggling, citing also the inconsistency of the RB20. However he did state that Red Bull have done everything they can to help the Mexican driver get the results the team desperately needed to continue onward with their success strek. "When I see sometimes he's struggling with the results, it's not nice to see, also for the team. But I think also the team has always given their very best and always tried to support him in the best possible way to get the best out of it. But unfortunately, that didn't always happen".
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