Marko: 'Sometimes Perez is faster than Verstappen'

F1 News

9 June 2021 at 15:11
Last update 9 June 2021 at 17:28
  • GPblog.com

At the Baku GP, Sergio Perez scored his first win for Red Bull Racing. In an interview for Auto, Motor und Sport Helmut Marko tells about the race of the Mexican.

With Lewis Hamilton missing turn one on the restart, Perez easily stayed in the lead. "And thank goodness Perez had spinning wheels on the restart. If he had got away better, Hamilton would have taken him down with him. The luck of the draw," the Red Bull advisor explained.

After his victory, the Mexican parked the car just after the finish line, which is not usual. The top three drive the car through to Parc Fermé. Apparently, the Red Bull driver was struggling with a problem: "His car just lost hydraulic fluid. It happened earlier in the race. The car kept dripping during the red flag. He parked it just to be sure. It is impossible to say exactly when the problem would have occurred. At some point, he would have run out of power steering. That would have set off a chain reaction."

Perez at his place at Red Bull

Asked if Perez has finally settled down at Red Bull, Marko said the following: "He was always up front. But that was already the case in Monte Carlo. As soon as he was free to go, his lap times were as fast as, or faster than, Verstappen's. That also made the overcut possible." For the contructor's championship, it would be good if Perez can continue the positive result. Valtteri Bottas performed poorly and finished in 12th place.