Red Bull driver Sergio Perez has not been consistent at all this season. When the season started, he looked like a possible threat to his teammate for the title. Checo mentioned that he has a better understanding of the car than the previous year. Last season when Max Verstappen won 15 races, his teammate won a couple. In 2021 when Max challenged Lewis Hamilton for the title and eventually won, Perez played the supporting role brilliantly.
However, this time, the Mexican mentioned that he is willing to win the championship this year and has played a supporting role long enough. He even won a couple of races at the start of the season. However, since the Monaco Grand Prix, Checo has lost his grip, and after four more races are over, he is still finding it difficult to get a podium. Red Bull’s advisor Helmut Marko feels Sergio Perez is not capable of contending for the title. However, he has named two drivers who he thinks can be title contenders.
Marko Names Two Drivers He Thinks Can Be Title Contenders In RB19
Helmut Marko mentioned two other drivers who can challenge Max Verstappen instead of Checo. According to the Red Bull advisor, “Only Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso can challenge Verstappen in the same car. But Max is stronger than those two.” Apparently, Sergio Perez has disappointed the team and the fans even in the same car. On the other hand, Max Verstappen is gaining confidence in every race as he is getting even better. The Dutchman looks unstoppable even for Hamilton and Alonso.
But Marko’s prediction was accurate in the Canadian Grand Prix as Alonso came second, and Hamilton followed him with a P3 finish. Fans have also been hoping to see some sort of rivalry this season. But no team has been able to compete against Red Bull. Hence, fans lately thought that perhaps Sergio Perez would take it to another level. He could start an internal rivalry and beat Max as Nico Rosberg did in 2016 against Lewis Hamilton. But Checo faded away in the wind. Albeit, he still is in the second place on the table. However, the Red Bull team is not looking at Checo as a contender anymore.
Horner Blames Sergio Perez’s Pace
But Christian Horner mentioned there was something wrong with Checo’s car. For the Mexican’s failure, the Red Bull boss blamed the pace of Sergio Perez. According to Christian Horner, a driver needs to start at a reasonable pace offset. But Sergio Perez did not provide that pace his car needed. Moreover, Perez feels there is something wrong with the setup and a bit with the RB19’s tires. The Mexican wants Red Bull engineers to check on that and then come back stronger.
Moreover, Sergio Perez blamed the timing of the safety car and mentioned that Fortune is not favoring his team at present. But Christian Horner mentioned Perez must have been struggling with a temperature of the tires. Moreover, Red Bull boss compared Checo with Verstappen saying, “Max has been strong at generating tyre temp with the way he drives the car.” However, Perez started on the hard tyre and then lost a bit of touch while he stopped on the medium.
