F1 star gives Red Bull rival MIDDLE FINGER while overtaking at Mexican Grand Prix

Sergio Perez platica con Max Verstappen — Photo: © IMAGO

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F1 star gives rival MIDDLE FINGER while overtaking at Mexican Grand Prix

The pair came into close contact with one another during the race at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez

Simmey Hannifin Donaldson F1 Editor

Motorsport journalist covering F1 since 2024

Monday 28 October 2024 09:12

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A Formula 1 driver gave one of his rivals the middle finger during an overtake at the Mexican Grand Prix on Sunday.

The race at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez was full of drama from the start, with a change of lead and two cars crashing out all in the first few corners.

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Max Verstappen was the man to lead at the end of lap one, but the Red Bull star eventually came home in an unusually low P6 after a huge double punishment from the FIA.

It was a miserable day for Red Bull overall, with Sergio Perez failing to make any progress after starting down in P18.

If such an underwhelming performance in front of his home crowd was not bad enough, Visa Cash App RB driver Liam Lawson added insult to injury when he gave the Mexican a middle finger when overtaking him down the main straight.

Sergio Perez had a miserable home race at the Mexican GP

Liam Lawson gave Perez the middle finger when overtaking him in Mexico City

Liam Lawson swears at Sergio Perez

Prior to the incident, earlier in the race on lap 18, Perez and Lawson were battling hard for 10th place.

The pair even made slight contact with one another multiple times as Perez fired his Red Bull down the inside into turn four in an audacious move, and Lawson responded with equal aggression.

"What the f*** is he doing? Is he okay?" was Perez's response on the team radio.

Later in the race, as Lawson flew past the Mexican down the straight with the aid of DRS, the incident was clearly on the Kiwi's mind, performing the crude hand gesture during the manoeuvre.

For added context, Lawson has been linked with replacing Perez at Red Bull next season and taking the second seat within the team alongside Verstappen.

Speaking to the media after the race, Perez was not at all impressed by the young VCARB driver.

Perez and Lawson battling at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez

"I don't have any relationship with him," Perez said on Lawson after the Mexico City incident.

"The way he has come into Formula 1, I don't think he has the right attitude for it. He needs to be a bit more humble.

"When a two-time world champion [Fernando Alonso] was saying things last weekend, he completely ignored him."

As Perez refers to, this is the second consecutive weekend Lawson has irked one of his more senior colleagues.

Last time out in the United States, Alonso and Lawson raced hard, but the Spaniard did not take kindly to some of the Kiwi's moves, with Lawson revealing that Alonso had threatened to 'screw' him as a result.