Max Verstappen F1 News: Red Bull chief predicts 'RUDE' comment to cause team friction

Max Verstappen, Sergio Perez, Red Bull, 2024, Social, Photoshop — Photo: © IMAGO

F1 Gossip

Red Bull chief predicts 'RUDE' Verstappen comment to cause team friction

Sergio Perez has been some way off the pace set by Max Verstappen this season

Kevin McKenna

Friday 19 July 2024 10:57 Updated: 12:14

Red Bull's chief engineer has admitted recent comments on the performances of Sergio Perez may cause friction within the team.

The Mexican star has come under intense scrutiny after a recent series of dismal weekends in Formula 1.

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Despite starting the season positively, the 34-year-old has collected just 15 points in his previous six outings, and now finds himself down in sixth spot in the drivers' standings.

Perez has been a reliable backup for defending world champion Max Verstappen since the pair teamed up in 2021, winning five races and achieving 28 podium finishes.

However, despite signing a contract extension with the Milton Keynes-based outfit earlier this year, his immediate future appears to be in jeopardy, with team boss Christian Horner growing increasingly frustrated by his driver's displays.

Sergio Perez is facing an uncertain future at Red Bull

Paul Monaghan has compared the performance of Perez with Max Verstappen

Perez 'may well bite my head off'

Reserve driver Liam Lawson and former Red Bull star Daniel Ricciardo have been tipped as potential replacements for Perez, as the pressure to perform increases with each passing week.

Now, his chief engineer has weighed in on the former McLaren driver's current struggles, delivering a damning verdict on his lacklustre form.

Paul Monaghan - who has been at Red Bull since 2005 - admits that even though his comments that Verstappen is clearly quicker than Perez may spark an angry reaction from the Mexican, he stands by them.

Perez and Verstappen have been team-mates since 2021

Speaking on the Beyond the Grid Podcast, the 56-year-old said: "I wouldn't want to be rude to Checo and he may well bite my head off if he was sat here.

"I'd say in general, Max is a little bit quicker than Checo. For me, that's not a controversial statement. Checo may well be most upset with me.

"Half a second [quicker] on average. Okay, let's say most circuits have 20 corners because it makes the maths easy, look at that as an increment per corner.

"The difference, per corner, [Max] maybe pulls half a tenth in one corner. It borders on trivial doesn't it? Yet it adds up through a lap."

Red Bull Max Verstappen Sergio Perez Adrian Newey drivers' standings