Sergio Perez admits Italian GP mistake as Red Bull team order IGNORED

perez, red bull racing — Photo: © LAT Images

Sergio Perez

Perez admits Italian GP mistake as Red Bull team order IGNORED

The Mexican claimed second regardless but it could have been so much easier for him

Joe Ellis

Monday 4 September 2023 08:27

Sergio Perez admitted that he made his race a lot more difficult than it should have been by ignoring a team order.

The Mexican was told to pit before any of the front-runners had been in to try and undercut the Mercedes of George Russell during the Italian GP.

He chose to stay out and try to pass the Brit on track but it meant he lost the chance to undercut and had to do it the hard way.

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After the race, Perez knew he had made a mistake himself in not following Red Bull's plan although he finished second regardless behind Max Verstappen.

Perez: It was very difficult

Sergio Perez had to pass George Russell, Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz on track to finish second at Monza

"Yeah, it was very difficult from the beginning," Perez said to FOX Sports MX after the race. "Russell was very hard to pass.

"Then the team sent me to pits and I decided to stay out, to try to avoid the undercut from Russell; perhaps if I had listened to the team everything would have been easier.

"It was just patience from then on with Charles and Carlos and got on podium."