Max Verstappen rues 'UNLUCKY' safety car after Red Bull error in Azerbaijan

Max Verstappen

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Verstappen rues 'UNLUCKY' safety car after Red Bull error in Azerbaijan

The world champion was denied a shot at victory after being leapfrogged by team-mate Sergio Perez

Dan Davis

Sunday 30 April 2023 17:44 Updated: 18:10

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Max Verstappen rued a stroke of misfortune after an 'unlucky' safety car period dented his hopes of clinching victory at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

The reigning world champion wasted little time in surging beyond pole-sitter Charles Leclerc in the early stages, while team-mate Sergio Perez also quickly passed the Ferrari on his way to taking the chequered flag in first.

Red Bull pitted Verstappen at the wrong time, however, after Nyck de Vries found himself stranded on the track, having collided with the wall at turn five and damaged his suspension.

The safety car was sent out moments later, helping Perez to make up time and take the lead.

The Mexican was then able to hold off Verstappen by just over a second for large swathes of the race and edged further ahead in the last knockings, reducing the latter's championship lead to just six points in the process.

Verstappen: 'It's a good team result'

"Of course, the safety car was a bit unlucky and then I had to push again," Verstappen told Sky Sports F1. "I tried to stay very close to try and get into the DRS. I think the tyres overheated a bit because of that, trying to follow.

"But also the balance, I was struggling to be really consistent. I was playing around with the tools a little bit. I think once I got that sorted, I would say the last 10 laps were actually quite good again.

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"Just a little too late, but a lot of things were learned again throughout the race. Of course, at the end of the day, it's a good team result."

Perez clinched victory to close in on Verstappen in the championship race

Asked whether the result would increase the pressure in the race for the crown, Verstappen was non-committal, insisting there are more twists and turns to come.

"I don't know. We know it's a very long season," he added. "Like I said, a lot of things are learned again.

"Baku's quite different to Miami and Miami is going to be very different to the other tracks we go to. You keep learning. It cannot be perfect all the time. I think there are always days when you can learn."