Red Bull deem Sergio Perez taking fastest lap over Max Verstappen in Australian GP as ‘reparation’ for Jeddah saga

After having fastest lap 'snatched' from him in Jeddah, Helmut Marko thinks taking taking it in Melbourne must feel like 'reparation' for Sergio Perez.

Red Bull deem Sergio Perez taking fastest lap over Max Verstappen in Australian GP as ‘reparation’ for Jeddah saga

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

Sergio Perez had a terrible Saturday in Melbourne. It all started with his issues during FP3, during which he reported issues with the car/brake balance of his Red Bull RB-19. This led to him going off-track a number of times. And in his first flying lap of the qualifying session, he beached his car in the gravel on turn 3. That meant the end of his qualifying session and confined him to a back-of-the-grid start. This later turned into a pit lane start.

Considering the circumstances, and that he started in the pitlane, the fact that Perez was able to drive to P5 is a good result. But only in hindsight, and it’s not great for his championship ambitions. Max Verstappen, currently his chief rival (and also teammate), was able to stretch his lead to the top with his victory. Still, he was able to salvage a decent result.

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During the previous weekend, in Jeddah, there was quite a bit of controversy surrounding Verstappen ignoring Red Bull’s orders to maintain his pace. He went for fastest lap and snatched it from Perez – which allowed the Dutchman to retain the lead of the championship. In Australia, it was Perez who took the fastest lap, to add to his 10 points.

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Helmut Marko, the advisor to the Red Bull teams, felt taking the ‘fastest lap’ in Australia will be a form of ‘reparation to Perez He told ServusTV: “This wasn’t his weekend, but he took that fastest race lap and that will feel like a kind of reparation after Jeddah. There, of course, he also wanted the fastest lap.” There’s no doubt that he wanted the fastest lap in Jeddah, and he even asked for an internal review because Verstappen took the fastest lap.

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Red Bull’s Helmut Marko blames Sergio Perez’s ‘insecurity’ for Australian GP qualifying moment

Red Bull's Sergio Perez (L) and Helmut Marko (R)
Red Bull’s Sergio Perez (L) and Helmut Marko (R)

Sergio Perez even exceeded Red Bull’s internal expectations of him in Australia, keeping in mind his pitlane start. Helmut Marko said: “In the race, he got the most out of it. We knew overtaking here isn’t easy, or even very tricky, and prior to the race we already took seventh or sixth place into account.” Overtaking is certainly not easy in Australia, especially when a ‘DRS train’ forms. As for the big moment in qualifying, Marko blamed Perez’s ‘insecurity’, and not the car’s issues.

He told Sky Germany: “Sergio, on the other hand [in contrast to Max Verstappen], already had problems with the engine settings in FP3. That unsettled him and unfortunately he slipped out. Theoretically, Sergio’s problems were actually gone from practice. Maybe he didn’t have the optimal setup, but he was insecure and impetuous. And on the first fast lap it was even more slippery, he was still on old tyres. All this has led to him slipping out.”

There is a long break between the Australian and the Azerbaijan Grands Prix, the latter of which will take place at the tail end of April. Back in 2021, he had won here, and then also out-qualified his teammate last season – though he eventually ended up second-best during the race. Lately, Perez has fared well on the circuit – and he might continue in the same vein for the upcoming race.

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