Itโs pretty poor form to stab your teammate in the back on any occasion, but to backstab a teammate who was crucial in securing both of your Formula 1 world titles? Legally speaking, here in Australia, thatโs what is referred to as a โdog act.โ And a dog act is precisely what Red Bull Racing superstar Max Verstappen committed towards Sergio Perez at the 2022 Sao Paulo Grand Prix (Brazil).
Having already secured the 2022 Formula 1 constructorโs world championship, as well as squaring away yet another world championship for young Verstappen with races to spare, all thatโs left for Red Bull to achieve is a second-place season finish for Perez, who is currently neck and neck with Scuderia Ferrariโs Charles Leclerc for the honour (read: every single point counts).
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But despite the fact that Max Verstappenโs status as this seasonโs grid king is already mathematically beyond contesting, and the fact heโd only be surrendering a single position (two points difference), taking an extremely minor one for the team and letting Sergio Perez pass clearly wasnโt on the weekend agenda.
โMax, let Checo through, please,โ ordered Verstappenโs race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase.
When that fell on deaf ears a la โMulti 21, Sebโ and race car #1 crossed the finish line, Lambiase asked: โMax, what happened?โ
โI told you already last summer, guys. Donโt ask that again to me, okay? Are we clear about that? I gave my reasons and I stand by it,โ replied Max Verstappen.
Radio footage was initially excluded from the global broadcast revealed Perezโs thoughts and feelings shortly after the betrayal.
โYeah, thank you for that, guys, thank you. This shows who he really is.โ
Sergio โChecoโ Perez
Hugh Bird, Perezโs own race engineer, responded with what practically everyone else was thinking: โI donโt know what to say.โ
Red Bull Racing Team Principal Christian Horner himself could also be heard apologising to Perez later on.
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โNothing to say, really. After all Iโve done for him, itโs a bit disappointing to be honest,โ Sergio Perez told Sky Sports.
โAll Iโve done for him,โ of course, is a direct reference to his duties as Mexicoโs Minister of Defence during the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (see: above), as well as the pressure he applied upon Charles Leclerc at the most recent Japanese Grand Prix, causing the latter to incur a penalty which effectively solidified Verstappenโs 2022 world title claim.
In a separate post-race interview, Perez added: โI believe, if he has two championships, it is down to me.โ
โI wonโt go into what we discussed behind closed doors. The drivers have shaken hands,โ said Christian Horner.
โWe work as a team, we race as a team. Our priority is to get Checo to be runner-up in the championship. Max has given us that commitment. If Max can help, he will do.โ
At the time of this writing, Sergio Perez is tied with Charles Leclerc for equal second in the driver standings at 290 points apiece. Should he close the book on 2022 at next weekโs Abu Dhabi Grand Prix with a third-place season finish, trailing behind the Monegasque by just two or less pointsโฆ remember this moment.
