We can officially say that Red Bull Racing are the cyonstructors’ Champions of the 2023 Formula 1 season. With the Qatar Grand Prix just around the corner, it is quite likely that Max Verstappen will be crowned drivers’ champion for the third consecutive time this weekend. This year has been dominated from start to finish by Red Bull.
At the beginning of the season, the intra-team fight within the squad seemed to be extremely competitive, since in the first 4 races that were held, 2 were won by the Dutchman and the other 2 by the Mexican.
However, a run of poor results by Sergio Perez, combined with the Dutchman’s excellence, has seen the two-time world champion take off considerably in the drivers’ championship.
Verstappen’s dominance has been so great that during the Japanese Grand Prix, he secured the necessary points so that Red Bull Racing clinched its 6th constructors’ championship at Suzuka.
Photo Credit: Red Bull Content Pool
In the same way we read about some statements from Red Bull’s main advisor, Dr. Helmut Marko, where he commented that the poor results or lack of concentration that Perez usually has is due to his origins, a fact that generated a lot of controversy within the highest category of the motorsport. He later apologized both to the Mexican driver and publicly.
Although it has been some time since this incident happened, Sergio Perez has brought it back to the table, but now during a visit to the Ford campus in Mexico, where he has stated that he feels that a lot of criticism he has received is due to his nationality.
“If something like this happens at Red Bull, you immediately have three hundred media channels telling you that you have to leave.” Perez stated. “This kind of thing happens often in Formula 1 and that’s how it works in a team environment.
“Plus, I have the feeling that being Mexican also has a lot of influence.”
The Mexican driver made reference to the incident that occurred during the Singapore Grand Prix, where Carlos Sainz, Lando Norris, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton were fighting for the win and the three spots on the podium.
Being a street circuit, any small mistake can cost you dearly, and that was exactly what happened to George Russell when trying to set up a pass on the McLaren driver on the last lap, Russell hit the the wall with his right front tyre on the entry to turn 10, crashing out of 3rd.
“We saw it with Russell. He crashed from third place on the last lap, but you don’t hear anyone talking about that,”
While it is true that Red Bull is one of the bluntest teams with its drivers, the Mexican’s poor results have not been caused by anyone other than him, as was the case at the Japanese Grand Prix, where he made contact with various drivers, having to change the front wing of his RB19 twice and later retiring from the race.
We have been able to see on different occasions how little patience the Austrian team has with its drivers, as happened with Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon, being the most recent. It’s vital for Sergio Perez to close the 2023 Formula 1 season in the best possible way.
