Sergio Perez blames Red Bull’s ‘tire choice’ for underwhelming Mexican GP qualifying

Red Bull wasn't able to save a set of C5 tires for the final Q3 run.

Sergio Perez blames Red Bull’s ‘tire choice’ for underwhelming Mexican GP qualifying

Sergio Perez (via IMAGO)

After a disappointing Qualifying at the Mexican Grand Prix, Red Bull driver Sergio Perez blamed the team’s tire choice for the poor performance. Mexico is the home of Perez, where most fans are present to see their local hero win. After being the first Mexican to stand on the home soil last year, Perez would aim for a win. However, this comes after putting aside his and the team’s lack of performance at the Mexican GP Qualifying.

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc snatched an unexpected pole from Red Bull in the early Q3 runs, making it a Ferrari 1-2 with Carlos Sainz. Perez was a quarter of a second short of the Ferrari’s pole time, whereas Max Verstappen fell short 0.097s.

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He blames the team’s tire management, which only left bother the drivers with only one run with new softs in the Q3 pole shootout. This mistake caused the Mexican to start behind the AlphaTauri’s Daniel Ricciardo. This comes after paddock rumors which suggest that Perez might be replaced by the Australian in 2024 at Red Bull.

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We lost a tire set in Q2. We put another lap on it, and just the progression in Q3, I felt like it could have been quite a lot better. It was very fine margins, actually. I think the progression that we had through qualifying wasn’t great, especially Q3.

Perez told F1TV, as reported by RN365.

The Mexican would have to show his best at his home race to end all rumors about his unsure Red Bull seat. In closing, Perez expects an interesting race tomorrow where a lot can happen, and maybe some in his favor.

Christian Horner’s reaction to their poor Mexican GP Qualifying performance

Reb Bull’s team principal, Christian Horner, opened up about the team’s average performance in Q3 of the Mexican Quali. However, the team blames its wrong choice for being unable to save new softs for the final run of Q3. The team boss believes Ferrari pulled off really well at the end.

Christian Horner (via Twitter / RBR)

In his after-race interview, Horner said Ferrair’s surprising speed and emphasized the day of being, which the team is not used to seeing. 

Even Ferrari itself was surprised by the tremendous speed. It's not the qualifying session we are used to seeing.

Horner concluded by saying that he believes Verstappen would not be penalized for his impeding at the start of the pitlane in Qualifying. That’s why the Dutchman is ready and set to start in P3 ahead of Ricciardo.

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