Despite a promising Saturday qualifying session which earned him a P4 starting position, ahead of his teammate and current leader in the World Drivers’ Championship Max Verstappen, Sergio ‘Checo’ Pérez’s Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend was, ultimately, a disappointing one, with the Oracle Red Bull Racing driver unable to finish the race due to a shared-fault collision between himself and Scuderia Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz in lap 50 of the 51-lap race.
Pérez’s late-race crash, and his subsequent P17 classification, was only a fraction of the Milton Keynes-based team’s misery however, as the 38 points scored by title rivals McLaren Racing, as opposed to the mere 10 earned by Red Bull from Verstappen’s P5 finish, saw the Woking-based team rip away the reigning World Champion’s hold on the 2024 Constructors’ Championship.
McLaren has enjoyed much success in recent races, with both Lando Norris, currently second in the Drivers’ Championship, and Oscar Piastri, currently fourth, having finished in the top 5 in all races since the British Grand Prix in July 2024. This success has been attributed, at least in part, to the dominant MCL38, which has been described as “the best car on the grid” by fans and pundits alike.
However, in recent days, the MCL38 has come under heavy scrutiny following the emergence of video footage which showed its rear wing flexing at high speeds along the straights of the Baku City Circuit.
Following the emergence of this video, both Red Bull and Ferrari raised questions about the legality of the MCL38 rear wing with Formula One’s governing body, the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) which, on Thursday, stated that the controversial rear wing had passed all compliance tests.
The FIA, through their spokesperson, did however, add that it was reviewing emerging data and additional evidence from the Azerbaijan GP and would continue to consider any mitigating measures for further implementation of the rear wing’s specifications.
While speaking ahead of the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix, Pérez was asked for his thoughts on the rear wing, especially as similar designs by Red Bull had been deemed illegal by the FIA in past events.
The Mexican driver admitted that the Milton Keynes-based team had been “pretty surprised” by the FIA’s decision on the MCL38’s rear wing, adding that he had believed it to be outside the regulations. Pérez also expressed his surprise at the lack of action taken with the MCL38’s rear wing as it had been used in several previous races.
“Yes, it sounds like it. I think it’s clear that it’s out of the regulations and it’s an [unintelligible] car. So, yes, pretty surprised with it.
“Also, they’ve done a few races with that rear wing on. But nothing did happen.”
There was some controversy generated following Pérez’s response with some media outlets allegedly misquoting the Mexican driver as having described the MCL38 as “illegal.” To clarify this, a statement was released by Red Bull, through their spokesperson stating that Pérez had not called the car illegal but had been misunderstood due to his accent.
The Red Bull spokesperson quoted Pérez as having said, “I think it’s clear that their rear wing is out of the regulations, and it is a legal car.”
That he had not been criticising the FIA’s decision, but instead expressing the opinions that he had held before the ruling based on his own observations and without the results of any tests, had also been clarified by Pérez during the interview.
When asked whether he had called the MCL38’s rear wing illegal or illegal, given that the FIA had passed the rear wing as legal, Pérez explained that he had not been disagreeing with the FIA’s decision, but had meant that, before the ruling, he had thought that the rear wing had not met the standards outlined by the regulations.
He said: “Yes, I mean, I really thought that that was not part of the regulations. My personal opinion, you see clearly the rear wing is bending.
“But obviously, they’ve done the checks, and it seems that it’s a legal car.”
He further clarified his thoughts on MCL38’s rear wing when asked again about his thoughts on it. He described the decision as being a surprise due to the massive benefit that it afforded McLaren, especially after issues that Red Bull had faced relating to the legality of similar features used on their cars in the past.
“I’m pretty surprised. I thought that wasn’t allowed but it seems like it is allowed. I think I’m as surprised as you are all.
“Definitely a massive benefit.”
However, he admitted that he was not an expert on technical matters and implied the limitations of his understanding why the MCL38’s rear wing had been found legal.
“I’m not very expert on technical stuff, but I’m sure the team is looking at it, why all of a sudden now it’s allowed.
“So, yeah, very very surprised.”
Regardless of the status of the MCL38’s controversial rear wing, however, Pérez, while speaking about Red Bull’s standing in the Constructor’s Championship, stated that Red Bull needed to focus on themselves as they had suffered “massive damage” in their chase for the championship. He added that it was important that the team focus on regaining good momentum.
“I think from our side, we just have to focus on ourselves.
“We had a massive damage in terms of the championship. They’re now ahead, so I think if we are able to get back into it and hopefully get some strong momentum on our side, then that would be really good.”
