Saudi Arabian GP: World Champion Max Verstappen expressed his frustration after finishing second behind his Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. Perez won the race from the pole position, while Verstappen settled for second place after starting in 15th due to a driveshaft failure in qualifying. Follow Formula 1 LIVE Updates with InsideSport.IN.
Verstappen, who benefited from a safety car deployment, said he was happy with his team’s performance, but personally, he was ‘not happy’. He added that he was working hard to win and expects both cars to be reliable when fighting for the championship.
“I recovered to second which is good and in general the whole feeling in the team is happy. “But personally I am not happy. I am not here to be second, especially when you are working very hard back at the factory to come here in a good state and making sure everything is spot on.
“When you are fighting for a championship and it looks like it is just between two cars, you have to make sure the two cars are reliable. We have to do better, absolutely – a cleaner weekend would be nice”, Verstappen said after the race.
Meanwhile, Red Bull boss Christian Horner praised Perez’s performance and said that both drivers were allowed to race but needed to keep it clean.
“I think that was Checo’s greatest Grand Prix, his best-ever race, managing the pace, the restart. We’ve got a great car and two great drivers. “We talked in the briefing [before the race] saying, ‘you’re free to race, but you keep it clean’. They’re both competitive. We saw two drivers pushing each other. “Max was patient. He picked the cars off and then progressed through the field, so [it was] a phenomenal recovery for him.”
UPDATED STANDINGS
Aston Martin and Mercedes draw level in the team standings after our points re-shuffle 👀#SaudiArabianGP pic.twitter.com/BoAmBrH4aX
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 19, 2023
Perez expressed his frustration at losing the bonus point for the fastest lap to Verstappen, and Horner explained that there was no reason for them not to let either driver have a crack at it.
“The point for the fastest lap meant a great deal to [Max] and there was no reason for us not to let either he or Checo have a crack at it.”
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