Max Verstappen has detailed what went down in a tense team meeting following an eventful Brazilian Grand Prix where he defied team orders from Red Bull to let Sergio Perez through. Verstappen’s race had been ruined earlier in the Brazilian Grand Prix when he collided with Lewis Hamilton in the opening laps before being handed a five-second penalty after being deemed at fault.
The Dutchman had to work his way back up the field with a late Safety Car helping his chances of doing that. The Safety Car had the opposite effect on Perez though, who began dropping back on the medium compound while both Ferrari drivers and Fernando Alonso passed him.
Verstappen was soon closing him down with a few laps remaining and Red Bull initially allowed the Dutchman through to chase down Alonso and Charles Leclerc. But after Verstappen was unable to pass any more drivers, Red Bull ordered the 2022 F1 champion to give Perez his place back to help him in his fight with Leclerc for second in the championship.
It sparked furious radio messages among the Red Bull drivers as Verstappen launched into a brash defensive argument as to why he did what he did. Perez couldn’t understand it and suggested Verstappen owed him for how he helped his team-mate win the title in Abu Dhabi last year.
“It is all about who finishes ahead anyway. If he needs the help, I am there.
“But it is good that we first talked about it now and cleared everything that was there and why I didn’t do it.”
While Verstappen refused to discuss his reasoning, it’s been reported that it all stems from the Monaco Grand Prix when Perez crashed in qualifying.
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