Perez: 'Collision with Russell was end of my championship chances'

Towards the end of the season, Perez is engaged in a heated battle with Charles Leclerc for second place in the championship. Probably not the battle both drivers would have wanted, as on paper they both had a good chance of fighting for the title. Perez drove in a team alongside reigning world champion Max Verstappen and Leclerc even led the rankings for a while.

Until mid-season, all three drivers still had a serious chance of winning the title. But after the Austrian and French Grand Prixs, Verstappen managed to build up a lead that could not be overtaken in the rest of the season due to crashes by both his rivals.

'Austria was the tipping point'

Perez specifically refers to Austria as the moment he realised he no longer had a chance. A collision with Russell prevented Perez from completing the race, leaving him a whopping 57 points behind his teammate after the race. "I think Austria was the tipping point for my World Cup chances. There I was hit by George. We were there in the standings, but this was a huge blow. Then we had a few races where we struggled," Perez said.

Over the course of the season, it became increasingly clear that Verstappen would be the undisputed winner, partly because the car was increasingly focused on Verstappen and less on Perez. The Mexican says that was a clear plan by the team, but does hope to avoid that in the future.