F1 Azerbaijan GP: Sergio Perez was ‘lucky’ in Baku, claims Christian Horner in shocking radio message to Max Verstappen

After the end of the Azerbaijan GP, Christian Horner told Max Verstappen, that Sergio Perez was "lucky" with one particular thing in Baku.

F1 Azerbaijan GP: Sergio Perez was ‘lucky’ in Baku, claims Christian Horner in shocking radio message to Max Verstappen

Sergio Perez (L) Christian Horner (R)

Sergio Perez has just become the first man to win the Azerbaijan GP twice. Previously, he won in 2021, and he’s also taken a number of podiums here. He clearly likes the venue – and it became apparent as the weekend unfolded. He won the sprint race, rather comfortably, as his teammate, Max Verstappen, had a sidepod hole, and could not even pass Charles Leclerc. But during the race, he beat the Dutchman in what was basically a straight fight.

Of course, he was somewhat fortunate as well. Maybe in a bid to avoid the fight, Red Bull called Verstappen into the pits. But then, Nyck de Vries’ crashed, and this brought out the full safety car soon. The Mexican driver took full advantage of this and kept his lead after pitting. When Verstappen overtook Leclerc and caught up with Perez, he was unable to overtake – and soon fell considerably behind. Today, there’s no doubt that Perez beat him on merit, even with the safety car saga.

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Perhaps in an attempt to console him post-race, Christian Horner told Verstappen over the radio: “Yeah, well done, Max. Checo [Perez] got a little lucky with the safety car there, but it’s a long, long season, [and] very, very good points today, so great team result, well done.” It is a rather odd thing to say about your own driver, even if meant as consolation to another. It won’t help ease claims about Verstappen being the ‘number 1’ driver at Red Bull.

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Read More: F1 Azerbaijan GP: Carlos Sainz believes that Max Verstappen and George Russell’s ‘aggressive’ sprint clash was a ‘personal’ feud

Sergio Perez has cut down Max Verstappen’s lead in Baku

Red Bull's Sergio Perez (L) | Max Verstappen (R)
Red Bull’s Sergio Perez (L) | Max Verstappen (R)

In reply to this, Max Verstappen said over the radio: “Yeah, it is what it is, I mean. We didn’t know the safety car would come out there. A bit unlucky, but good team result, and I think we learned a lot there.” Christian Horner also lamented confusion with the Nyck de Vries’ situation, to which the two-time world champion said: “It is what it is. I tried to stay close, but I think I was overheating my tires a bit and then I [unclear, sought the tools out].”

Horner concluded the exchange by saying: “Yeah, take the points, it’s a marathon [of a] season, and great to see you both out there.” It indeed is a very long season. As it currently stands, the Dutchman still leads the championship. And there are still nineteen races remaining – which is longer than most seasons were, a couple of years ago. Anything can happen during this, though, the tide seems to be heading toward a Sergio Perez-Max Verstappen championship battle.

As it stands, Verstappen is leading the championship by six points to Perez. After that, there is a rather huge gap, considering we’re only four races in. Fernando Alonso sits 27 points behind Perez, and he is followed by Lewis Hamilton, Carlos Sainz, and Charles Leclerc. It looks unlikely that these, or any other drivers will fight for the title this season – even if they bring in major upgrades. So, it’ll be interesting to see how this Verstappen-Perez title fight develops.

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