Zak Brown claims the 2023 ‘championship would be wide open’ if Sergio Perez was in Max Verstappen’s seat

As things stand, Verstappen can single-handedly lead Red Bull to constructor's victory.

Zak Brown claims the 2023 ‘championship would be wide open’ if Sergio Perez was in Max Verstappen’s seat

Zak Brown, (Credits: Formel), Sergi Perez and Max Verstappen (Credits: planetsport.com)

Red Bull are creating history this season as they cruise to winning the drivers’ and constructors’ championship with no other team remotely near them. But their domination is mostly one-sided, with Max Verstappen grabbing most of their points. McLaren boss Zak Brown recently gave his views on Red Bull’s dominance and the huge gap between Verstappen and Sergio Perez.

Perez has been completely overpowered by his teammate this season, as he is trailing Verstappen by 125 points in the standings. Zak Brown claimed that Red Bull’s domination is, in reality, Max Verstappen’s domination. He said that if Perez were racing in both their cars, the competition would be wide open.

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“As much as Red Bull’s killing everyone right now… it’s really Max is killing everyone right now. If they had two Sergio’s in the car, with all due respect, this championship would kind of be wide open,” Brown told ESPN.

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Brown said Ferrari, Aston Martin, McLaren, and Mercedes have claimed the second spot this season. If it were not for Max Verstappen, there would have been as many as five teams in first place. Brown believes it is only a matter of time before these teams catch up to Red Bull and F1 gets its competitiveness back.

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Italian journalist Leo Turrini reveals Max Verstappen was a bully in his rookie years

Esteban Ocon and Max Verstappen after 2018 Brazilian Grand Prix
Esteban Ocon and Max Verstappen after the Brazillian Grand Prix 2018.

Max Verstappen joined Toro Rosso (now AlphaTauri) back in 2015. Within a year, he was promoted to Red Bull, with whom he is now making history. But as much as the Dutchman may have matured now, acclaimed Italian journalist Leo Turrini has claimed that he was a bully in his initial years.

Verstappen was severely criticized for dangerous movement while braking, which led to the banning of the move. Although the ban is lifted, drivers can only do that once in a race. He was also ordered by the FIA one time to get physical with Esteban Ocon in 2018.

“Verstappen has matured over the years. He’s always had incredible talent, but he was a bully to begin with. Everyone can have the ideas he wants about the character, but if one argues Max as a driver, well, he’s an expert,” said Turrini.

Turrini went so far as to compare Verstappen and Perez’s dynamic to Lionel Messi and Leandro Parades, teammates for Argentina’s football team. He said, “Verstappen is to Perez what Messi is to the former Juventus player Paredes.”

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