F1 News: Max Verstappen reveals his car was DAMAGED in scary Perez incident

Thumbnail for article regarding Verstappen reacting to Perez — Photo: © IMAGO

Miami Grand Prix

Verstappen reveals his car was DAMAGED in scary Perez incident

Sergio Perez's lock up into Turn 1 may have caused more damage to Verstappen than previously thought.

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Monday 6 May 2024 21:57

Max Verstappen has revealed that his car actually received some contact in a scary incident with Sergio Perez during lap one of the Miami Grand Prix.

All the signs indicated another dominant weekend for the Dutchman, taking pole position in both the sprint and Grand Prix qualifying.

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Verstappen won the sprint and looked likely to win Sunday's race until he struck a bollard, prompting a Virtual Safety Car.

The Red Bull driver pitted at the end of lap 23 when the VSC had ended, concerned with his front wing (although no damage was initially found).

Max Verstappen won the Miami sprint race

Did Perez’s incident cause damage to Verstappen?

However, a full safety car afterwards saw Lando Norris take advantage to make his stop and come out ahead of Verstappen.

He held off the Dutch driver from the restart and maintained his lead to eventually win the race.

Verstappen’s struggles in the Turn 14/15 chicane were not the only incident he was involved in during the race.

Verstappen reveals damage to his diffuser

During the opening lap, his team-mate Sergio Perez locked up into Turn 1, appearing to miss everyone – including Verstappen, by the skin of his teeth.

Although no harm was initially done, after the race Verstappen revealed the extent of the damage he suffered from the contact.

“Yeah, I was very aware. I mean, I turned in and I saw him lock up,” he said during the post-race press conference.

“And I looked after the race. There was like a scratch on my diffuser. So something must have hit.

“But yeah, it was very close. Could have ended in a disaster, of course, for the team as well. So yeah, lucky.”

Red Bull Max Verstappen Lando Norris Sergio Perez Miami Grand Prix