In the final of the 2021 season, Sergio Pérez fought like a lion against Lewis Hamilton several times, robbing the Briton of seconds and nerves with daring maneuvers in the title fight with Max Verstappen. Shortly before the end of the race, while in third place, the Mexican obediently parked his battered car in the pits, just to avoid a retirement and a possible safety car phase. Actions that were ultimately decisive for Verstappen’s first overall World Cup victory. The gratitude of the past seems to have completely disappeared.
“Checo is a legend!” Verstappen cheered on the pit radio during the 2021 Abu Dhabi race, after the race the newly crowned world champion confirmed: “I don’t think I would be sitting here without Checo, because then Mercedes would have had enough distance to to pit in a VSC or a safety car.”
Not a little indicated that Verstappen had found the perfect teammate to dominate the F1 world for years to come. After the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix, things suddenly look completely different.
While Verstappen has long since won the second world title, Pérez is still fighting for the runner-up title with Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc. When Leclerc was fourth shortly before the end of the spectacle in Interlagos, but Pérez was only sixth and Verstappen only seventh, Red Bull decided to swap within the team, hoping that the faster Dutchman could not only do Fernando Alonso on P5, but also intercept Leclerc.
The announcement of the racing team: If it becomes apparent that the project will not work, Verstappen should fall back behind Pérez. An instruction that Verstappen ignored to everyone’s surprise.
“I told you last time, you shouldn’t tell me something like that anymore, okay? Is that clear? I have my reasons and I stand by them,” Verstappen smashed the desired team order on the pit radio. The shocked Pérez fumed: “Thanks guys, that shows who he really is.”
The subsequent interviews with those involved could not clarify what exactly triggered the Zoff.
“I don’t have all the information yet. I don’t know what to say. After everything I’ve done for him in recent years. We have to discuss that in the team,” Pérez explained to “Sky”. His race was “unfortunate”.
Team boss Christian Horner and sports boss Helmut Marko emphasized like a prayer wheel that the matter had been resolved internally and that Verstappen would do everything in Abu Dhabi to help Pérez to become runner-up in the world championship. Above all, Marko seemed remarkably taciturn. Both dodged the question of the exact reasons. “There’s thick air,” said ex-driver and “Sky” expert Timo Glock.
Verstappen himself did not bring any light into the darkness either. He “does not want to say his reasons here. I explained everything to Christian Horner and Helmut Marko. If he [Pérez, d.Red.] Need help in Abu Dhabi, then I will help.” When asked if something had happened that justified his behavior, the Red Bull star simply said: “Yes.”
Statements that are likely to keep the F1 world busy for a long time.