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The 2022 F1 Brazilian Grand Prix witnessed some major drama when Red Bull's Max Verstappen refused to give up the sixth position in the race to his teammate Sergio Perez, despite team orders that asked him to do so. Team boss Christian Horner believes that this was because Red Bull were not prepared for a circumstance under which the team would ever have to ask the two-time world champion to ever give up a place for his teammate, especially towards the last few laps of the GP.
As per F1.com, the Briton admitted that it was a mistake on the part of the team, given that they failed to prepare the drivers for all possible situations ahead of the race. He said:
“I think the root cause of the problem was we had never envisaged being in a situation, being in the final few laps, being in sixth and seventh place in that grand prix. And I think it was something that, as we hadn’t envisaged it, we hadn’t discussed it before the race, and I think that was a mistake on our part, that we should have thought through or tried to think through every single scenario.”
He added:
“And so, I think that was a mistake as a team that we didn’t discuss it and come up with a very clear plan. Obviously, it was unfortunate what happened, but it was quickly discussed, openly and transparently. And both drivers were very clear, open, and honest with each other, and from that, as a team, we move on and the dynamic between the drivers is absolutely fine.”
Horner also emphasized that while Red Bull had a few shortcomings this season, Max Verstappen's overall performance throughout the year was enough to overshadow the rather minimal mistakes made by the team. He said:
“I think we made some mistakes in Brazil, we’ve learned from that and as I say, we move on. We’ve done some amazing things. These two drivers have performed incredibly well together. They’re the reason that we are in the position that we are. Max’s season was on another planet last year. So, we’re not going to let the events of a couple of laps in Brazil dictate the year for us.”
Former F1 driver says Red Bull's Sergio Perez requires a "software update"
Former F1 driver David Coulthard insinuated that it is time for Sergio Perez to begin catching up to his team-mate Max Verstappen in terms of performance if he wants to be treated similarly at Red Bull. The Dutchman has taken two consecutive world championship titles, while Perez continues to remain in the shadows.
As reported by the BBC, Coulthard said:
“For Checo [Sergio Perez] to look at how many victories Max had and how many he had, it’s not like he is just having to polish a few corners. This is a major rewrite, a software update. If you use the same ingredients in the cake you will get the same cake.”
He added:
“You need to change it if you want something different. He has access to the data of the world champion. He can see where he’s quicker, where he’s slower. Checo will be quicker in some areas. It’s just Max is putting it all together more often than not.”
Red Bull's Sergio Perez finished the 2022 F1 season third in the drivers' championship.
