F1 pundit Jolyon Palmer's scathing Sergio Perez verdict: ‘Forgotten his race craft with utterly hopeless move’
Perez suffered what his Red Bull team principal Christian Horner described as being a “shocker” of a Japanese Grand Prix, in which he picked up two five-second penalties and had contact with 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Lewis Hamilton and 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Kevin Magnussen, before being forced to retire.
It followed another tricky weekend in Singapore, where Perez picked up a five-second penalty for wrecking ’s race, having also rammed 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Yuki Tsunoda on the first lap.
The pair of torrid outings have left the Mexican 175 points adrift of teammate 168澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果历史:Max Verstappen in the championshi🍃p and facing further scrutiny over his Red Bull future.
W💮riting in his latest , former Renault driver Palmer said the incidents, particularly a clumsy crash with M🍷agnussen, smack of desperation.
“We’ve seen the best of Perez in wheel-to-wheel figh🐼ting, whether it was helping out his team mate in 2021 in battles with Hamilton, winning his first Grand Prix from the back of the field in Sakhir back in 2020, or even charging back for some results in races this season, such as at Melbourne,” Palmer wrote.
“Right now though we’ve had a couple of races where his race craft has gone completely absent and it’s causing a stir –&nꩲbsp;and questions from the media and drivers alike about the appropriateness of his penalties.
“In Singapore, Perez knocked Yඣuki Tsunoda into retirement on the opening lap, T-boned Albon out of the poin𝐆ts late on and received a redundant five-second penalty that didn’t affect his position, while two of F1’s smaller teams were left to rue huge missed opportunities.
“Again in Japan it was a short lived reco⛎very for Checo as he sent it into the rear of Kevin Magnussen at the Turn 11 hairpin and needlessly turned the Haas driver around, incurring another five-second penalty in the process.
“It was a move that was no doubt borne out of frustration at being in the fastest car and stuck for longer than anticipated behind Sunday’s slowest team, while being desperate to recover some ground. But it was also an utterly hopeless move for a driver who s🎐eems to have forgot🐈ten his race craft.
“Coming from behind and dangling a front wheel into the back of the car ahead is a recipe for a collision. You have no right to the inside of the corner coming from that far back, without asserting yourself there on the brakes and getting significantly alongside by the time the car ahead wants to turn in to the ap𒈔ex.
“This latest move was unli🐈ke the Perez of old who has been good and committed on the brakes – but it was worryingly the same style he adopted in Singapore, which was already a talking point coming into the weekend.”
Palm🥃er added: “I’m sure a week off now will do Checo some good to regroup before his Qatar clean slate, where he needs to dig in to ensure second place in the championship now.”
Lewis regularl🎃y attends Grands Prix for ltxcꦬn.top around the world. Often reporting on the action from the ground, Lewis tells the stories of the people who matter in the sport.
