Max Verstappen refutes rumors of Red Bull’s car changes favoring Sergio Perez after Azerbaijan GP

Max Verstappen has denied that the car tweaks favored Sergio Perez over him and stated that performance depends on speed and effectiveness.

Max Verstappen refutes rumors of Red Bull’s car changes favoring Sergio Perez after Azerbaijan GP

Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez (Via: Imago)

Sergio Perez out-qualified Max Verstappen in Baku, securing P4 while his teammate took P6, for the first time since the 2023 Miami Grand Prix. Perez’s strong qualifying performance at the Azerbaijan GP sparked rumors that the RB20 was better suited to him than Verstappen. However, the Dutchman disagreed with that idea.

In an interview, Max Verstappen strongly denied that the car favored Sergio Perez more than him. He asserted that the changes made since Monza had been beneficial overall.

YouTube video

The 26-year-old emphasized that these adjustments alone did not guarantee better performance. He highlighted that driving the car quickly and effectively was still crucial in achieving results.

FS Video
No, no, no. I think the changes that we did to the car were positive but then you still need to put the speed into the car.
Max Verstappen said

Verstappen believes that Red Bull are heading in the right direction with the car setup. However, he felt that the tweaks made just before qualifying in Baku had a negative impact, causing issues during the race. He regretted that these adjustments did not work as intended and that he ended up paying the price during the race.

I think we were heading into the right direction but the changes we made before qualifying tipped it over the edge and we paid the price on that unfortunately in the race.
Max Verstappen added
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Max Verstappen admits having a lot of problems with RB20 jumping around the city circuit in Baku

Max Verstappen stated that his RB20 was very difficult to drive during the Azerbaijan GP and he did not enjoy it. He explained that the problems he noticed during qualifying were the same issues he faced in the race. Specifically, he had a lot of trouble with the car jumping around, which made it challenging to control.

Max Verstappen (via IMAGO)
Max Verstappen (via IMAGO)
It was not enjoyable. Basically what I was worried about already after qualifying and during qualifying was also my main issue in the race, where I had a lot of problems with the car jumping around.
Max Verstappen told Viaplay.com
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Red Bull needs to analyze what went wrong with Verstappen and address the issues before the Singapore GP. With Verstappen finishing behind both the McLarens, they lost the lead in the Constructors’ Championship. Given their current performance, it seems unlikely that Red Bull will be able to reclaim the lead immediately.